Photographer of the Week: Sebastiao Salgado

Sebastiao Salgado's strong compositions fill out the frame with personality and reality. There is a story that speaks up by itself. They are unique photos. 

Born on February 8, 1944, in Minas Gerais, Brazil, Sebastiao Salgado left the family farm to earn a Master's degree in Economics at the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil.

According to The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica article, Sebastiao Salgado, posted on February 4, 2023, states that Salgado became an activist during the Military government in Brazil. Living in times when free expression became oppression, Salgado and his spouse Leila Wanick Salgado migrated to France, where he accomplished a PhD in Economics while Leila Salgado studied Architecture. His first contact with a camera happened during a work trip in Rwanda for the International Coffee Organization. 

In the article by Julio Puiati, Sebastiao Salgado and the famous worldwide social photography, on the Artcetera website from April 17, 2022, Salgado says, “For the first time I looked through a lens, photography immediately started to invade my life”. This experience changed his life, and he decided to dedicate all his time to photojournalism.

In 1979 he joined the Magnum Photos cooperative for photojournalists, where he started long-term photography projects that register stories throughout the world. One remarkable photo he captured is the photo of John Hinckley's attempt to assassinate President Ronald Reagan, which turned out to be one of his most famous pictures in the United States. 

Grayscale images became his preference. The color can distract from the subject and the information it is trying to transmit. The article “The Black and White Photography”, by Ruy Neto, published on the Epic website quotes Salgado, “The black and white allow me to concentrate on people’s personalities, and dignity. I transformed their reality into a more strong reality”.  

After dedicating his career to sensitive narratives of socio-economic conditions that impact people in dehumanizing conditions, Salgado decided to take a different approach. He started photographing the beauty in the world, such as the love and respect for nature and its living creatures. In his book Genesis, he explores beauty in natural environments.

  The Southern elephant seal pups in South Georgia, 2009. Photography by Sebastiao Salgado. Image source

 Salgado and his wife started an environment project called Instituto Terra. The Institute help revive and preserve the land Salgado grew up in Brazil. The environmental conditions of the place needed a lot of changes, and after many years dedicated to the project, the land is responsible for being one of the best examples of native tree rehabilitation in the region. 

Salgado has proven to educate and impact through his photos. His brilliant path through photojournalism, allows him to reach a big audience with his message. In the TedTalk, “The silent drama of photography | Sebastião Salgado”, the photographer talks about his life and his beliefs.