The award-winning photographer will deliver a keynote speech during the 25th General Conference of ICOM, which will take place in September 1 – 7 in Kyoto, Japan
Sebastião Salgado was born in 1944 in Minas Gerais, Brazil, and he began his career as a professional photographer in 1973 in Paris, working with several photo agencies. In 1994, he and Lélia Wanick Salgado formed Amazonas images, an agency created exclusively for his work.
A humanist and a tireless traveller, his career has taken him to over 100 countries for his photographic projects. In 2004, Sebastião Salgado began a project named Genesis, aiming at the presentation of the unblemished faces of nature and humanity. It consists of a series of photographs of landscapes and wildlife, as well as of human communities that continue to live in accordance with their ancestral traditions and cultures. This body of work is conceived as a potential path to humanity’s rediscovery of itself in nature.
Beyond press publications, his main works were presented in books. Touring exhibitions of these works have been, and continue to be, presented in museums and galleries throughout the world. He is currently working on a photographic project on the theme of the Brazilian Amazon forest and its inhabitants, the indigenous communities. This work will be presented in the form of books and exhibitions in 2021.
Salgado has been awarded numerous photographic prizes in recognition of his accomplishments. He is the recipient of prestigious honours, such as the Grand Prix National, Ministry of Culture and French-Speaking Countries, France. In 2016, Salgado was elected member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts of Institut de France, and was named Chevalier (Knight) de la Légion d’Honneur of France. Salgado is an honorary member of the Academy of Arts and Sciences in USA and was elected Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, New York, USA in 2019.
ICOM Kyoto 2019
Between the 1st and the 7th of September 2019, Kyoto (Japan) will host the biggest and most important conference of museums in the world. More than 3.000 museum professionals and experts from all international backgrounds will participate in this triannual event, the 25th General Conference of ICOM. After 24 successful editions, ICOM’s flagship conference has become a worldwide reputed hub for exchange about the topical issues museums tackle today, as well as the most innovative solutions. Early bird registrations will be available until the 30th of April. To find more information on the conference and to register, check the ICOM Kyoto 2019 website.
Headline image ®Igor Bely, 2009
