Bearing witness:
Acclaimed Acclaimed photojournalist James Nachtwey's stunning retrospective comes to Asia for the first time
By Ron Gluckman
Nikkei September 10, 2023
Self-taught, fearless and ferociously determined, James Nachtwey has become one of the world's most acclaimed documentary war photographers -- or what he calls "anti-war photographers." For more than four decades, he has roamed the most dangerous parts of the globe, documenting the destructive forces of humanity: war, conflict, genocide.
His stark, haunting images have graced the covers of most leading international news journals such as Time, Life and National Geographic, and won numerous accolades. Although a part-time resident of Bangkok for nearly two decades, he has maintained a low public profile in Asia. But his work now comes under Thailand's spotlight in "Memoria," a sweeping retrospective of his storied career on display at the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre (Sept. 5-Nov. 26).
Alongside his acclaimed work covering the Baltic Wars, intifada -- or uprising -- in Palestine, genocide in Rwanda and the devastating Sudan famine, the exhibition features memorable images from across Asia, including the 2015 earthquake in Nepal, the grim legacy of Agent Orange in Vietnam, and gripping images from India, Iraq and Afghanistan. There is also a short film about Nachtwey's extraordinary life and career by Thomas Nordanstad, a Swedish filmmaker who also lives in Thailand.
Organized by the Royal Photographic Society of Thailand, "Memoria" also exhibits for the first time recent photos by Nachtwey from Ukraine. The exhibit is the culmination of five years of efforts to mount a one-man show of Nachtwey's work, which stalled in the pandemic, said curator Fon Windsor-Clive.
"It's massive, taking up an entire floor," she said of the 126 large frames that fill the gigantic galleries on the seventh floor of the BACC. The exhibit is on loan from Fotografiska, the Stockholm-based center for photography, and has been shown in major capitals including New York and Paris. "Exhibits of this kind rarely make it to Thailand," added the former university photography lecturer. "Most Thais have never had a chance to see this kind of work except on the internet or in books. It's monumental to be able to view in person," she added.
Nachtwey knows the power of photography; it has shaped a life that spanned several decades as a contract photographer with Time magazine, taking him to global recognition. He has been awarded the Overseas Press Club's Robert Capa Gold Medal five times, as well as winning the World Press Photo Award two times. The Oscar-nominated documentary feature "War Photographer," which was screened to open the Bangkok exhibition, follows him for two years through Indonesia, Kosovo, Palestine and other locations. This summer, he was awarded the inaugural Excellence in Visual Journalism Award by the International Center for Journalists.
Photography has guided virtually every step of Nachtwey's adult life and, say close friends, fuels his relentless drive to document the greatest ills of humankind. He calls it a quest to give voice to the voiceless, and expose the horror and injustice of war. As a young freelance photographer, he was inspired by great photojournalists such as Larry Burrows, who spent most of a decade covering the Vietnam War, and W. Eugene Smith, an early 20th-century American famed for photo essays that ranged from World War II to expansive coverage of everyday Americana.
"I could see the social value of documentary photography of both conflicts and social injustice," Nachtwey told Nikkei Asia. "And I can see that that could have a powerful influence on the population. And that it was an important element in the process of change, informing public opinion and creating pressure under our political system to make change. Journalism and photography are part of that."
Colleagues heap praise on Nachtwey. "James is one of the most impactful and significant photojournalists," said Gary Knight, a fellow photographer who, along with Nachtwey and five other colleagues, founded VII Photo Agency in 2001. Nachtwey, who was previously with Magnum Photos for nearly 15 years, eventually left VII Photo Agency to work through his own independent studio.
"During the 1980s through to the present day he set the standard by which many others were judged, or judged themselves, especially for conflict photography," Knight said. "I have spent a lot of time working in close proximity to James; his courage, self-discipline and work ethic are extraordinary. But I think it is his ability to fully immerse himself in his work, and his utterly uncompromising commitment to the craft that enabled him to build the legacy he has."
Nachtwey grew up in Massachusetts, attending Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, where he studied art history and political science. Only later did his path turn to photojournalism.
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"I didn't really know what I wanted to do after graduation," he said. He began teaching himself, reading books and renting space in darkrooms. In the late 1970s, he worked for a newspaper in New Mexico. After four years, he struck out on his own as a freelance photographer, with his first assignments covering the conflict in Northern Ireland and then in Palestine.
This was the culmination of youthful fascination with the power of photography, reading Life magazine, and coming of age in the 1960s and 1970s. "It was a very tumultuous political time in America," he said. "The Vietnam War was on, with all the accompanying protests. The civil rights movement was underway. And although I wasn't a photographer and had no inclination to be one [then], I was very much affected by the images and those seminal events of 20th-century American history.
"[Eventually] I felt that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to be a photographer, in the tradition of those documentary photographers who worked in Vietnam, and on the civil rights movement." He once explained in a TED Talk: "I wanted to be a photographer in order to be a war photographer. But I was driven by an inherent sense that a picture that revealed the true face of war would almost by definition be an anti-war photograph."
An El Salvadorian patrol was ambushed by guerrillas.
His website displays photos from wars, but also images from stories about famine, toxic pollution, and drug addiction. The website is titled: "Witness: Photography by James Nachtwey." It has few words, but carries this message: "I have been a witness, and these pictures are my testimony. The events I have recorded should not be forgotten and must not be repeated."
Nachtwey has also been a casualty of the conflict he covers. He was shot in the leg while covering political protests in Thailand in 2014. He was more seriously injured in a grenade attack in Baghdad in 2003. After recovering, he returned to Bangkok in 2004, where he set up a base to cover Asia -- long an area of focus and fascination. He did not settle in for long. The day after Christmas, the Asian tsunami struck, and he quickly flew out to the worst-hit area of Indonesia.
"Anytime you enter a war zone, you're putting yourself at risk," he said. "And I've had many, many close calls, but been very lucky." Prodded for more detail, he told the story behind a standout picture in the exhibition.
A cross sits atop a building, enveloped in menacing smoke cloud and hails of debris as if being bombed. But it is not a war zone in the usual sense. It is New York on Sept. 11, 2001. Planes hit the World Trade Center near Nachtwey's home in lower Manhattan that day. As crowds poured from the burning building, a solitary figure ran the opposite way, into the unfolding disaster.
"I immediately went there, photographing. And as I was making one image, the south tower just collapsed. And so I felt compelled to get to that site. ... I was so driven to do that, I didn't put two and two together and realize, if the south tower collapsed then the north tower would collapse, too. I was standing next to it when it collapsed. I had about five seconds to save myself."
Of course, he made sure he got the shot first. "It still seems like a miracle that I survived, as it was literally coming down right on top of me."
Despite the sheer scale of human misery in the wars, disasters and genocide he has documented, Nachtwey remains philosophical. "Change happens very slowly," he said. Yet he also expresses concern about the vitality of journalism and prospects for documentary photography of this kind in the future.
"I think the future looks a bit murky to tell you the truth, because there's real confusion between what is known as the media, which I prefer to call the press, and social media. People actually don't know the difference quite often. And they don't understand that legitimate news organizations have a code of professional ethics to which reporters and photographers are accountable. With social media there is no code and no accountability. People can say anything they want, and are protected by freedom of expression. But they don't necessarily have any intention of telling the truth, and quite often, are purposely spreading misinformation."
With media in decline and under attack, he does worry about the future. "Can you imagine these things happening in the dark and no one knows about it? Think of Ukraine, if there weren't pictures of what's going on. ... Think of the Vietnam War without pictures. Or the Civil Rights movement without pictures.?Or evidence of the Holocaust without pictures.?Yes, it's absolutely vital.
This story was published by Nikkei on September 10, 2023