Steve McCurry Photography
American, b. 1950
Steve McCurry is an American photographer who gained international acclaim for his arresting portrait of a young refugee known simply as Afghan Girl.
Originally published on the cover of National Geographic in 1985, the photograph shows a young Pashtun orphan, later identified as Sharbat Gula, who was living in a refugee camp near Peshawar, Pakistan, during the Soviet Union’s occupation of Afghanistan. The image is emblematic of McCurry’s work, which has brought him to war zones across the globe. Rather than focusing on the violence of the battlefield, McCurry seeks to capture the human face of conflict, distilling what is universal and recognizable in each portrait.
McCurry was born in Philadelphia and attended Penn State University, graduating cum laude with a degree in theater arts in 1974. After several years working at a newspaper in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, he left to work as a freelancer in India, where he honed his skill for capturing unguarded moments in daily life. Just prior to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, in 1979, he crossed the border from Pakistan into Afghan rebel–controlled territory, wearing native garb to disguise himself, with rolls of film sewn into his clothing. The photographs he took there were among the first in the world to document the conflict, and his work was awarded the Robert Capa Gold Medal for “photographic reporting from abroad.”
Over the course of his career, McCurry has documented daily life alongside conflicts in Cambodia, the Philippines, the former Yugoslavia, Beirut, Iraq, Afghanistan and Tibet. Though his photos depict serious and sometimes frightening situations, his ability to connect with subjects and capture something of their personalities allows his images to transcend the documentarian distance of wartime journalism. The results are real portraits that happen to be set in tough situations. Welder in a Ship Breaking Yard, Mumbai, India (1994), for instance, reveals only the subject’s eyes, but they’re so intently fixed on McCurry’s lens that they seem to express volumes. Monk Running on Wall (2004) shows a young monk defying gravity as he skitters along an exterior wall of the Shaolin Monastery in Henan, China, over the heads of his friends. Like a Baroque painting, McCurry’s picture captures a moment of dynamic action that reveals something instantly recognizable in a subject from another part of the world.
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Artist: Steve McCurry
Kashmir Flower Seller, 1996
By Steve McCurry
Located in New York, NY
Steve McCurry has been one of the most iconic voices in contemporary photography for more than 30 years, with scores of magazine and book covers, over a dozen books, and countless ex...
Category
1990s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Tibet Woman
By Steve McCurry
Located in New York, NY
Steve McCurry has been one of the most iconic voices in contemporary photography for more than 30 years, with scores of magazine and book covers, over a dozen books, and countless ex...
Category
Early 2000s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Young Man walks behind Elephant, Sri Lanka, 1995
By Steve McCurry
Located in New York, NY
Steve McCurry has been one of the most iconic voices in contemporary photography for more than 30 years, with scores of magazine and book covers, over a dozen books, and countless ex...
Category
1990s Naturalistic Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Venice Reflections
By Steve McCurry
Located in Greenwich, CT
Man walking along the canals of Venice
Edition of 15
Category
2010s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Opera Singers, Hong Kong
By Steve McCurry
Located in Greenwich, CT
Opera singers in Hong Kong, China.
Edition of 30
Category
1980s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Fishermen, Weligama, South Coast, Sri Lanka, 1995
By Steve McCurry
Located in Toronto, ON
4" x 5" Unframed
Closed Edition Photograph
MAGNUM Photography
Hand Signed by Steve McCurry
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, C Print, Digital
Kashmir Flower Seller - Color Photography, National Geographic, Water
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Kashmir Flower Seller by Steve McCurry is listed as a 24 x 20 inch digital c-print, available in an edition of 90. This photograph is printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss P...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Men attend Mine Awareness Program in Kandahar - Color Photograph, Documentary
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Men attend Mine Awareness Program in Kandahar by Steve McCurry is a color photograph depicting a group of people in the desert, gathered around one man teaching the group with visual...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Monk at the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa - Color Portrait, National Geographic
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Monk at the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa by Steve McCurry is a color portrait of old man with a deeply wrinkled face, wearing a colorful robe and a red hat.
Digital C-print on Fujiflex Cr...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Steve McCurry 'Kathmandu Valley Harvest'
By Steve McCurry
Located in New York, NY
C-Prints printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Super Gloss Paper
20 x 24 inches
Signed and numbered edition of 10
with certificate of authenticity
Steve McCurry (American, b.1950) is ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
C Print
The Golden Rock Beneath Kyaiktiyo Pagoda, Kyaiktiyo, Myanmar, 1994 by Steve McCu
By Steve McCurry
Located in Toronto, ON
4" x 5" Unframed
Closed Edition Photograph
MAGNUM Photography
Hand Signed by Steve McCurry
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, C Print, Digital
Running at Sunset, Ethiopia
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Afghan Girl - Color Photograph, National Geographic, Portrait, Documentary
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
One of Steve McCurry's most iconic images, this portrait features a young Afghan girl with piercing green eyes wearing a red head scarf.
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry is a 24 x 20 i...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Real Gabinete Português de Leitura by Steve McCurry, 2014, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Real Gabinete Português de Leitura, which translates to the Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading, by Steve McCurry depicts a woman standing on a ladder in an extravagant library. She ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Boy in Red and White Scarf, The Sahel, Bamako, Mali, Africa
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Afghan Girl - Color Photograph, National Geographic, Portrait, Documentary
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
One of Steve McCurry's most iconic images, this portrait features a young Afghan girl with piercing green eyes wearing a red head scarf.
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry is a 24 x 20 i...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Man and Taj Reflection, Agra, India
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
signed by artist in ink on verso
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Ahmadi Oil Fields by Steve McCurry, 1991, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Ahmadi Oil Fields by Steve McCurry depicts two figures standing in a fiery landscape. They are both dressed in white hazmat suits with gas masks. Both figures are fixated by the fire...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Afghan Girl with Hands on Face by Steve McCurry, 1984, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Afghan Girl with Hands on Face by Steve McCurry presents a powerful portrait. A young girl with piercing green eyes stares off in the distance. She wears a red scarf around her head ...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital Pigment
A coffee farmer prays alone in an empty church by Steve McCurry, 2012
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
A coffee farmer prays alone in an empty church by Steve McCurry depicts a man sitting by himself on a bench, kneeling over with his hands in prayer. Light pours in from the open door...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Camels in Dust Storm by Steve McCurry, 2010, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Camels in Dust Storm by Steve McCurry presents two figures leading their camels through the sandy terrain of the desert. They struggle further into the storm, consumed by the orange ...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Dust Storm (Vertical) - Limited Edition Color Photograph, National Geographic
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Dust Storm (Vertical) by Steve McCurry is a 30 x 24 inch Digital C-Print on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Paper, available in an edition of 75. This photograph features a group...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Procession of Nuns, Yangon, Burma
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry, 1984, Digital C-Print, Portrait Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
One of Steve McCurry's most iconic images, this portrait features a young Afghan girl with piercing green eyes wearing a red head scarf.
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry is a 24 x 20 i...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Monks Praying at Golden Rock by Steve McCurry, 1994, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Monks Praying at Golden Rock by Steve McCurry presents a group of men praying next to a giant rock. The four men are dressed in red, with their hands in prayer raised to their forehe...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Fishermen at Weligama by Steve McCurry, 1995, Digital C- Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Fishermen at Wligama by Steve McCurry features four men fishing in the ocean, on the shores of Sri Lanka. Three of the men are sitting on top of tall sticks, perched above the water ...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Mother and daughter on their balcony in Beirut by Steve McCurry, 1982
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Mother and daughter on their balcony in Beruit by Steve McCurry depicts a woman and child sitting outside. The woman looks down, concentrating on peeling her potatoes, while the girl...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Blue Mosque, Mazar e Sharif by Steve McCurry, 1992, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Blue Mosque, Mazar e Sharif by Steve McCurry depicts a couple seated on the ground, feeding a flock of white doves. More birds swoop down from the sky, intrigued by the hand out of f...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Holi Man by Steve McCurry, 1996, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Holi Man by Steve McCurry depicts a group of men during the Hindu festival, Holi. A man covered in green powder lies on his back while a sea of red men lift and carry him. Joyous exp...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Dust Storm (Vertical) by Steve McCurry, 1983, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Dust Storm (Vertical) by Steve McCurry is a 30 x 24 inch Digital C-Print on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Paper, available in an edition of 75. This photograph features a group...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Rajasthan, India 1983
By Steve McCurry
Located in Toronto, ON
4" x 5" Unframed
Closed Edition Photograph
MAGNUM Photography
Hand Signed by Steve McCurry
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, C Print, Digital
Man Mediates at Auschwitz by Steve McCurry, 2005, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Man Meditates at Auschwitz by Steve McCurry depicts a man sitting in the middle of train tracks at the Memorial and Museum Auschwits-Birkenau in Poland. The tracks lead back to the g...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Flower Vendor on Dal Lake by Steve McCurry, 1999, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Flower Vendor on Dal Lake by Steve McCurry depicts a man transporting vibrant, multi-colored flowers in a canoe. He paddled down the calm river, passing by a house surrounded by lush...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry, 1984, Digital C-Print, Portrait Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
One of Steve McCurry's most iconic images, this portrait features a young Afghan girl with piercing green eyes wearing a red head scarf.
Afghan Girl by Steve McCurry is a 24 x 20 i...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Afghan refugee - Peshawar, Pakistan
By Steve McCurry
Located in Toronto, ON
4" x 5" Unframed
Closed Edition Photograph
MAGNUM Photography
Hand Signed by Steve McCurry
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, C Print, Digital
Afghan Girl Hiding Her Face, Peshawar, Pakistan, 1984 - Steve McCurry
By Steve McCurry
Located in London, GB
Signed and numbered on photographer’s edition label on reverse
Digital c-type print
24 x 20 inches
Edition of 90
Steve McCurry (born 1950) is best known for his evocative colour ...
Category
1980s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
C Print
Monk praying at Bodh Gaya
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Mahout Reads with his Elephant by Steve McCurry, 2010, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Mahout Reads with his Elephant by Steve McCurry depicts a man and elephant sitting in a grassy field. The man sits on a rock while he reads his book, and the elephant sits behind him...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Man and Taj Reflection by Steve McCurry, 1999, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Man and Taj Reflection by Steve McCurry depicts a man dressed in white, kneeling down to gather water below him. The Taj Mahal is mirrored almost perfectly in the still water.
This ...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Rabari tribal elder, Rajasthan, India 2010
By Steve McCurry
Located in Toronto, ON
4" x 5" Unframed
Closed Edition Photograph
MAGNUM Photography
Hand Signed by Steve McCurry
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Paper, C Print, Digital
Iceberg by Steve McCurry, 2019, Digital C-Print, Landscape Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Iceberg by Steve McCurry is a 20 x 24 inch digital C-print, printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Paper. This photograph features a giant iceberg floating in the middle of t...
Category
2010s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Ganesh Chaturthi Festival by Steve McCurry, 1994, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Ganesh Chaturthi Festival by Steve McCurry features a mass of people walking into the shallow waters of the sea, as part of their celebration. People gather around a large statue of ...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital Pigment
Kashmir Flower Seller by Steve McCurry, 1996, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Kashmir Flower Seller by Steve McCurry is listed as a 24 x 20 inch digital c-print, available in an edition of 90. This photograph is printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss P...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Steve McCurry Procession of Nuns, Rangoon, Burma, Signed
By Steve McCurry
Located in London, GB
Procession of Nuns, Rangoon, Burma, 1994 Signed
by Steve McCurry
19 × 23 inches / 50 × 60 cm - paper size
Edition of 90
With hand signed, dated ...
Category
1990s Modern Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Kyaikto, Burma [Monks praying by the Golden Rock]
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
signed by artist in ink on verso
Category
1990s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
![Kyaikto, Burma [Monks praying by the Golden Rock]](https://a.1stdibscdn.com/archivesE/art/upload/14/1551/McCurry_GoldenRock72_1.jpg?width=240 "steve mccurry golden rock")
Afghan Girl with Hands on Face by Steve McCurry, 1984, Digital C-Print
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Afghan Girl with Hands on Face by Steve McCurry presents a powerful portrait. A young girl with piercing green eyes stares off in the distance. She wears a red scarf around her head ...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital Pigment
Mingun Pagoda, Mandalay, Burma
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
signed by artist in ink on verso
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Boy in Mid-Flight, Jodhpur, India
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Signed and numbered by artist
Category
Late 20th Century Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Archival Pigment
Tram, Calcutta by Steve McCurry, 1997, Digital C- Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Tram, Calcutta by Steve McCurry depicts a bustling intersection. The streets are lined with markets selling fruit, clothes and other varying products. People fill the streets, some w...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Moonrise in Mumbai by Steve McCurry, 1994, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Moonrise in Mumbai by Steve McCurry is listed as a 20 x 24-inch digital c-print, available in an edition of 30. This photograph is printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Pape...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Taj and Train (Horizontal) by Steve McCurry, 1983, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Taj and Train by Steve McCurry is a 20 x 24 inch digital c-print on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss paper, available in an edition of 90. This photograph features two men holding...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Holi Festival, Rajasthan
By Steve McCurry
Located in Santa Monica, CA
signed by artist
Category
Steve McCurry Photography
Dust Storm (Vertical) by Steve McCurry, 1983, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Dust Storm (Vertical) by Steve McCurry is a 30 x 24 inch Digital C-Print on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Paper, available in an edition of 75. This photograph features a group...
Category
1980s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Steve McCurry 'Afghan Girl'
By Steve McCurry
Located in New York, NY
Steve McCurry
Afghan Girl
1984 (printed later
C-print on Fuji Crystal archival paper
24 x 20 inches
Signed and dated
Steve McCurry has been one of the most iconic voices in contempo...
Category
1980s Realist Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
C Print
Harvest Market by Steve McCurry, 1992, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Harvest Market by Steve McCurry is a 20 x 24 inch digital C-print, printed on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss Paper. This photograph features a man standing in a market, surround...
Category
1990s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Woman in Canary Burqa by Steve McCurry, 2002, Digital C-Print, Photography
By Steve McCurry
Located in Dallas, TX
Woman in Canary Burqa by Steve McCurry is a 24 x 20 inch digital c-print on FujiFlex Crystal Archive Supergloss paper, available in an edition of 30. This photograph features a portr...
Category
Early 2000s Contemporary Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
Digital
Flower Seller, Dal Lake, Srinigar, Kashmir, 1996 - Steve McCurry
By Steve McCurry
Located in London, GB
Flower Seller, Dal Lake, Srinigar, Kashmir, 1996 - Steve McCurry
Signed and affixed with photographer's edition label and numbered on reverse
Digital c-type print
20 x 24 inches, e...
Category
1990s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
C Print
Shaolin Monks Training, Zhengzhou, China, 2004 - Steve McCurry
By Steve McCurry
Located in London, GB
Shaolin Monks Training, Zhengzhou, China, 2004 - Steve McCurry
Signed, affixed with artist's edition label and numbered on reverse
Digital c-type print
20 x 24 inches, edition of 3...
Category
Early 2000s Steve McCurry Photography
Materials
C Print
Steve Mccurry photography for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Steve McCurry photography available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Steve McCurry in c print, archival pigment print, digital print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the contemporary style. Not every interior allows for large Steve McCurry photography, so small editions measuring 20 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Patty Carroll, Maggie Taylor, and Andrew Moore. Steve McCurry photography prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $4,000 and tops out at $20,000, while the average work can sell for $7,000.
Artists Similar to Steve McCurry
Questions About Steve McCurry Photography
- What is Steve McCurry's style?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022Art photographer Steve McCurry is known for his close-up images of peoples faces, often termed a headshot. McCurry has traveled the globe, capturing conflicts, traditional cultures and scenes from contemporary society. His work often features bright colors in the center of the image, drawing the eye directly to his subject. Shop a selection of Steve McCurry pieces from some of the world’s top art dealers on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertMay 3, 2024Opinions vary as to what is Steve McCurry's best work. Undoubtedly, his most easily recognizable piece is Afghan Girl, a photograph that he took in 1984 that became a symbol of the suffering of refugees during the Soviet-Afghan War. Other works that could be thought of as among his best include Camels Under a Blackened Sky (1991), Man at the Holi Festival in Rajasthan (1996), Sri Lankan Fisherman (1995) and Shaolin Monastery (2004). On 1stDibs, find a range of Steve McCurry art.