Born in Aimorés, Brazil in 1944, Sebastião Salgado studied economics before switching to photography in 1973. His economic experience was put to use at the World Bank before his photographic adventure brought him to Magnum Photos in 1979. He started Amazonas Images alongside his wife, Lélia. Over the course of his five-decade career, he has visited over 120 nations, photographing major moments and concerns.
He is known for his striking black and white compositions, which combine creative talent with a strong sense of social and environmental responsibility. His widely regarded paintings, including “The Other Americas,” “Sahel,” “Workers,” “Migrations,” and “Genesis,” provide detailed record of human life and our planet’s delicate state. He has received multiple accolades for his contributions to photography, including the W. Eugene Smith Grant, the Royal Photographic Society Centenary Medal, and the Sony World Photography accolades’ Outstanding Contribution to Photography honour. In addition to his photography, Salgado is a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and a member of France’s Académie des Beaux-Arts.
Salgado’s corpus of work is distinguished by his dedication to long-term, self-initiated undertakings that include much research and writing. With a strong sense of humanity, he investigates issues such as poverty, migration, labour, human rights, and ecology, appreciating worldwide cultural diversity while pushing for environmental conservation.
I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a second. It’s very instinctive. What you do is a fraction of a second, it’s there and it’s not there. But in this fraction of a second comes your past, comes your future, comes your relation with people, comes your ideology, comes your hate, comes your love – all together in this fraction of a second, it materializes there.
Sebastiao Salgado
His influence goes beyond photography, shaping the perspectives of other artists and sparking critical debates on global issues. He actively supports efforts to better people’s lives and safeguard ecosystems, particularly through the Instituto Terra, which he and his wife founded in 1998 to restore Brazil’s Atlantic Forest.
Although Salgado has retired from active fieldwork, his passion for storytelling endures. He currently spends his time collecting his huge database of over 500,000 photographs, ready to share his life’s work with the world. He continues to take part in exhibitions and partnerships, such as the Sony World Photography Awards 2024 in London and a project with the Wende Museum in Los Angeles, all with a focus on capturing the Amazon jungle.
In reflecting on his legacy, Salgado expresses thanks for his diverse life experiences. He sees his work as more than just a portrayal of the globe; it is a monument to the beauty and hardships that humanity faces. He hopes that his images will serve as a compelling reminder to future generations of the critical need to safeguard and preserve our world.
