Sabastiao Salgado
- Roberta Winchester
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Today we pay tribute to Sabastiao Salgado, the renowned Brazilian photographer who died this past week. He was regarded as one of the world's greatest documentary photographers.
Throughout his illustrious career, Salgado was celebrated for his evocative black-and-white images that documented both human suffering and the grandeur of nature.
Chinstrap penguins on an iceberg. Notice the dimension and grandeur in this photo.
Over many years he travelled to 130 different countries, going deep inside forests, into oil fields and mines.
One of his most ambitious projects was Genesis, a nine-year endeavor aimed at capturing the planet's remaining untouched landscapes and wildlife . This project marked a significant shift from his earlier work, which often focused on human hardships, to a celebration of nature's pristine beauty.
During the Genesis project, Salgado spent considerable time in the Galápagos Islands, where he photographed a variety of bird species, including cormorants and albatrosses. He described these encounters as profoundly moving, noting the birds' behaviors and the sense of being accepted into their world .
Through the Instituto Terra, Salgado and and his wife Lélia also restored his father's farm in Brazil to a thriving rainforest by planting more than three million trees. What was once a drought-stricken farm became a lush landscape which attracted back all the wildlife that had been lost.
The institute stated: "Sebastião was much more than one of the greatest photographers of our time. Alongside his wife, Lélia Deluiz Wanick Salgado, he sowed hope where there was devastation and brought to life the belief that environmental restoration is also a profound act of love for humanity."
Salgado left more than 500,000 photographs, everyone of which is remarkable. If you are interested in knowing more about him and his work, there is a fascinating documentary (streaming online) by Wim Wenders about Salgado called "The Salt of the Earth."
Thank you so much for sharing these images with us. I was not familiar with this photographer's work, but will definitely make a point of seeking out more of it. Each of the images shared seems to make such a statement beyond itself. A true storyteller through the medium of photography.