Sony World Photography Awards 2024 to Recognize Sebastião Salgado's 'Outstanding Contribution' with Major Award

World-renowned Brazilian photojournalist, Sebastião Salgado, will receive the prestigious "Outstanding Contribution to Photography" award at the Sony World Photography Awards 2024, as appointed by The World Photography Organization.

Salgado will be honored in a black-tie ceremony at the London Hilton in Park Lane, and in honor of the achievement, his famous works will be showcased at the Sony World Photography Awards exhibition located at Somerset House in London from April 19 to May 6.

The exhibited photos are personally selected by Salgado himself and cover over 50 years of his career as a photographer. This wide portfolio includes captivatingly stunning black-and-white photographs centering around the crucial worldly themes of destitution, armed conflict, displacement, and nature.

Photographer Sebastião Salgado's Exhibit Amazonia Makes North America Debut In Los Angeles — LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 19: Brazilian documentary photographer Sebastião Salgado stands for a photo at a press preview of his exhibit Amazônia at the California Science Center on October 19, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. The 13,000 square-foot immersive exhibit, designed by his wife Lélia Wanick Salgado, features 200 large-scale photographs and video montages taken over seven years of the Amazon rainforest, remote Indigenous tribes, and the threat deforestation poses to their survival. Salgado says, 'My wish, with all my heart, with all my energy, with all the passion I possess, is that in 50 years' time this exhibition will not resemble a record of a lost world.' The exhibit is making its North American debut on October 21st and is supported by the Annenberg Foundation. Mario Tama/Getty Images

What is the 'Outstanding Contribution to Photography' Award?

According to The World Photography Organization, the title is bestowed on a person or group who has made a tremendous and significant impact on the artistic medium of photography. Recipients of the award had routinely exhibited powerfully moving pictures that captivate, educate, and inspire.

Salgado is the 17th to receive the honored title, joining the pantheon of revered artists like contemporary photographer Rinko Kawauchi, the 2023 recipient; fine art landscape photographer Nadav Kander, the 2019 recipient; and anthropological photographer Martin Parr, the 2017 recipient.

In a statement, Salgado expresses great joy in receiving the honor, saying, "'I am honored to receive this award, and to know that my work is reaching audiences."

"Photography is my way of life, it is my language, and throughout my career, I have always been interested in capturing the historical moment in which we are living, and telling the stories of our species and our planet," he adds.

What is Sebastião Salgado Known For?

Salgado is perhaps most known for his photograph of John Hickley's attempt to assassinate then-President of the United States Ronal Reagan in 1981. The image was shot during Reagan's first 100 days as president and was originally a commission by the New York Times.

Reportedly, Salgado left a conference early to win an advantageous position over other photographers and because he had to fill eight pages for the Times.

Salgado is also known for his documentation of the Amazon and its people, which the photographer spent over 9 years doing. This is largely due to his upbringing in Brazil, being born in Aimorés in 1944, he had access to the vast beauty that nature has to offer, with its fertile rainforests and exotic wetlands.

"A photographer photographs with his heritage, and in my work I seek to explore our shared human experience," Salgado shared.