Steve McCurry
Steve McCurry is an American photographer who traveled to Pakistan where he met a group of refugees from Afghanistan that managed to sneak him across the border. McCurry wanted to focus on the lives of civilians that were experiencing the Russian invasion (“Bio”). His photo documented the brutality of the invasion and his most popular image is that of the Afghan Girl, Sharbat Gula. McCurry photographed Gula in 1984 near the Pakistani city of Peshawar (“Afghan Girl”). She seems to be about 12-13 years old during this time. For a long time, her identity had been unknown until early 2002. She has even been compared to Leonardo Da Vinci’s painting of the Mona Lisa (“Afghan Girl”) and became a reluctant symbol of her people during this conflict.
Gula has a soul-stirring expression that is jumbled with torment and tenacity. She has a haunting expression with a mixture of pain and resilience. Her green eyes captivated many Western viewers and sparked conversion around the issues taking place during the war. McCurry decides to photograph the Gula in low, soft lighting with a green backdrop and the red burqa enhances her eyes. In Afghan culture, women are not allowed to be photographed unless given permission and while Gula gets her photo taken, she seems to have a defiant look. Her tattered red burqa that frames her face provides insight into the horrors she has witnessed, horrors that no child should bear. Her demeanor contains fear and innocence as well as fortitude. Afghan women were not allowed to be photographed during this time and that was their culture. Gula seems to have a very bold look almost as if she is acting in defiance. The green backdrop nearly matches her green eyes which pop out as a result of her red burka. This also compliments her eyes. It seems as though McCurry uses soft lighting in order to have Gula’s eyes become the main focus. Gula manages to portray a demeanor that is filled with fear and innocence as well as inner strength.
Then, nearly 17 years after the first photograph was taken, McCurry found Gula again and took her picture once more. The difference between the first picture and the second picture is shocking. Her eyes seem more faded and the dark purple and dark brown appear to make her seem older. She seems to no longer have that same defiant look and has been robbed of her innocence. Not only this, but her purple burqa falls straight down, which has no character, unlike her first picture with the red burqa. McCurry’s work provides awareness of many issues that may have gone unnoticed unless photographed. Works Cited
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