Sebastiao Salgado, one of the world’s foremost documentary photographers, passed away in Paris earlier this week. His legacy is enormous on many fronts. His powerful black & white images are displayed in galleries around the world, and celebrated inside his monumental books that document the struggle of humanity. Salgado and his wife also established Instituto Terra, a not-for-profit that restores farmed land back to its natural habitat. Watch his amazing Ted Talk on Why we must rebuild our forests.
Beginning as an economist for the World Coffee Organisation, Salgado believed he could make a greater impact through photography. A member of several photography agencies during his life, including Sygma, Gamma, and the renowned Magnum Photos.
While a nominee at Magnum he was on assignment for the New York Times Magazine covering US President Reagan’s first 100 days in office. On 30 March 1981, Salgado captured the attempted assassination of Reagan. However Salgado is not remembered as a news or reportage photographer.
Salgado’s documentary photography projects span years. His gritty, contrasty, black and white empathetic images have a distinct style. However style never gets in the way the subject or their story.
Salgado’s work won the most prestigious photography awards including W. Eugene Smith Grant and the Oskar Barnack Award. Like many documentary photographers today, with the demise of printed magazines, he used galleries to display his work and engage the public. This gave his causes a greater audience and elevated status. Salgado’s projects would span years. These included Workers, Migrations and his magnum opus, Genesis which looks 8 years to create. You can watch his Ted Talk on Genesis here. Unfortunately while working on Genesis he contracted malaria, consequently triggering leukemia that took his life.
Salgado has changed humanity with a legacy that will live on. He inspired many photographers including myself. To see why watch, The Salt of the Earth, a Academy Award nominated documentary celebrating Salgado, directed by his son Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, and Wim Wenders.