STEVE McCURRY’s new book, In Search of Elsewhere: Unseen Images, takes us across the globe and offers new perspectives on various locations that the photographer has already made famous. By Uma Nair
Dust Storm 1983: Rajasthan in India. Anyone who reads and loves photography knows this iconic image has stood on its own terms against a vast universe of work across the globe. Steve McCurry of Magnum and National Geographic fame needs no introduction whatsoever. But all of us who love the power of a single frame to tell a story will remember that McCurry had once stated: “A picture can express a universal humanism or simply reveal a delicate and poignant truth by exposing a slice of life that might otherwise pass unnoticed.” He does this and more in his new book — In Search of Elsewhere: Unseen Images — which will be launched at Sundaram Tagore Gallery Madison Avenue, NYC.
Interestingly, it brings together some of the award-winning photographer’s most iconic works alongside a selection of never-seen-before images that provide new perspectives on many of the locations McCurry is best known for, including Cambodia, Croatia, Pakistan and Ethiopia.
McCurry has travelled the globe for his photographic projects, covering areas of international and civil conflict and documenting ancient traditions, vanishing cultures and contemporary culture. His exquisite use of colour and unwavering commitment to retain the human element has made his images timelessly captivating. McCurry’s work has been the subject of numerous museum shows and books, including his latest book, which is a collection of previously unpublished prints spanning his thirty-year career.
From Dust Storm in Rajasthan, Blue Series in Jaipur to stunning images in Kabul and China et al, each image is a story within a story. The people belong to all walks of life. They are common place workers or labourers who jostle for space on his frames. This legendary image has its own story. Taken at the hottest time of the year in Rajasthan, India, Steve was being driven in a taxi when suddenly a wall of dust just blew in from nowhere with an incredible roar.
Object of hope
“It was quite frightening,” he remembers. “These women were off on the side of the road huddled together protecting themselves. I saw them out the car window and thought this is going to be an incredible situation. I ran across the field, thinking my cameras were going to be ruined and made maybe a dozen pictures. It was very exciting. In a situation like this sometimes you’re not really thinking, you’re just reacting. Your brain is on automatic pilot and you just shoot away,” says he.
The book combines stunning photographs of India and other countries, its people, monuments, landscapes, seasons, and cities. Talking about his relationship with his camera, McCurry says, “For those who were desperate, my camera became an object of hope... Throughout my year-long coverage of the monsoon world, my strongest conviction was that I was involved in the fundamentals of life.”
For him, the photograph is an undeniably powerful medium. Free from the constraints of language and harnessing the unique qualities of a single moment frozen in time. In this suite, we see a combination of portraits that express his curiosity and commitment to capturing unexpected moments across many lands.
In chaotic times of our contemporary society, so over-inundated with imagery, it is easy to overlook the power of a single frame to change the way we look at the world. McCurry’s lone flower seller in Kashmir is as evocative as the stilt fishermen in Sri Lanka or the silhouette of camels against the rising smoke of oil wells. His works capture enchanting terrain in landscapes, historical sites and the life of ordinary people in major cities and rural areas, representative of diverse regions of India and other places. In a strange and quixotic way the book illustrates the connections between ancient and contemporary India.
McCurry has been coming to India for more than 30 years, knows it intimately, understands its charms and has seen it change over three decades. These magnificent photographs, some justly famous, many new and revelatory, reveal the beauty of the country and highlight its extraordinary contradictions.
Ultimately it is the two Rajasthani women walking up the staircase of the Chand Baori step well that speaks about the past and the present. And McCurry’s words swing into view: “If you wait, people will forget your camera and the soul will drift up into view.” And so be it.
(The iconic images will also be part of an exhibition running till December 18.)
