Sebastião Salgado: An Uncertain Grace

by Sebastião Salgado, Fred Ritchin

An Uncertain Grace represents Salgado's journey through poor villages in the Andes, shanty communities of miners in the Brazilian jungle, and refugee camps in famine-stricken Ethiopia, Chad and Mali. This book is one of the most important visual records of life in the twentieth century. Sebastião Salgado has been awarded virtually every major photographic prize in France, Germany, Holland, Spain, Sweden and the United States. A former member of Magnum Photos and recipient of the W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography, he has twice been named Photographer of the Year by the International Center of Photography.

Genres: Photography, Nonfiction

158 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Sebastião Ribeiro Salgado Júnior was a Brazilian social documentary photographer and photojournalist.
He traveled in over 120 countries for his photographic projects. Most of these have appeared in numerous press publications and books. Touring exhibitions of his work have been presented throughout the world.
Salgado was a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. He was awarded the W. Eugene Smith Memorial Fund Grant in 1982, Foreign Honorary Membership of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1992; and the Royal Photographic Society's Centenary Medal and Honorary Fellowship (HonFRPS) in 1993. He was a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts at the Institut de France since April 2016.

Reviews

[James Moes · Rating 5 out of 5]

But light is a secret buried under the garbage and Salgado's photographs tell us that secret.

The emergence of the image from the waters of the developer, when the light becomes forever fixed in shadow is a unique moment that detaches itself from time and is transformed into forever. These photographs will live on after their subjects and their author, bearing testimony to the world's naked truth and hidden splendor. Salgado's camera moves about the violent darkness, seeking light, stalking light. Does the light descend from the sky or rise out of us? That instant of trapped light - that gleam - in the photographs reveals to us what is unseen, what is seen but unnoticed; an unperceived presence, a powerful absence. It shows us that concealed within the pain of living and the tragedy of dying there is potent magic, a luminous mystery that redeems the human adventure in the world.

Excerpt from introduction by Eduardo Galeano

[Yun Rou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monks and NGOs work for the disenfranchised and forgotten, trying to improve lots and lives. Salgado, clearly one of the greatest photographers of the modern era, gifts them with immortality through the use of shutter and lens.

[Chanti · Rating 5 out of 5]

My god, Salgado is AMAZING. His photographs tug at me with the most profound intensity. His ability to capture the humanity and dignity of those who the world has forgotten is utterly unreal. He has won literally every award for humanistic photography. AHHHHHH. Seriously. One of the best collections of photography I've ever seen. Contributions from Galeano and Ritchin make this collection even better, as they give context to the photos through thoughtful, searching questions and accounts of history and the human condition. I'm in awe of Salgado's craft, his journey and the people with whom he has built companionships through trust and truth... and whom he has ultimately been able to photograph as any human being should be photographed: with dignity.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading An End to Polio, I was looking forward to reading/perusing more of Salgado's work. While the photographs in An Uncertain Grace certainly didn't disappoint, I found myself greatly wishing for more captions, or even titles. Instead, even the locations of the photographs weren't revealed until the end of the book in list form, and the two essays in the book were not truly focused on the photography work either. For me, having context and hearing stories, or at least being able to see names/places in conjunction with the images would have been much more powerful.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black & white photography; brown tones. Third world. The photographs of the 1984-85 famine in the Sahel and Ethiopia are disturbing, to say the least. The photographs of the Serra Pelada gold mine (Brazil) and the native manual laborers are stunning. I've never seen anything quite like them. Reminded me of the construction of the pyramids by untold thousands of expendable workers. Essays by Eduardo Geleano and Fred Ritchin.

[Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Incredible photos, especially the ones of the Brazilian mines. Only 3 stars because of the book’s design: why would you place info about each photo at the very end of the book? That’s a pain for the reader.

Essays are merely ok, not especially illuminating.

Overall, slightly disappointing presentation of stellar photos.

[darío hereñú · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hermoso por donde se lo mire.
Más aun, si están las sabias palabras de Galeano.
Salgado, como siempre, con esa sensibilidad, esa saudade, ese mirar el mundo y deconstruirlo y hacerlo tan, pero tan...

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great work, but not his best ever. You have to be prepared to view pictures of suffering with appreciation before attacking this book. The essays (one at the beginning and one at the end) are interesting.

[Peter Tillman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. Serra Pelada photos are classic. Others, not. "Social consciousness" written LARGE.

Skimmed, past the miners. Which was a strange episode. Maybe the last Gold rush?

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gorgeous work. I definitely want a copy.

[NunoAvelar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sebastião Salgado é mais que fotografia. É a fotografia de intervenção, é a foto retirada em contexto de vivência com os nativos, como sendo mais um, após meses como infiltrado. Fotos belas, poderosas e sem artifícios ou manipulações digitais.
A juntar a este galardoado fotógrafo, destaco os textos e reflexões de Eduardo Galeano.
Este livro aborda entre outros temas: a dureza do trabalho nas minas de ouro na Serra Pelada do Brasil; a fome no Sael; ou vidas na América Latina.
Concebido com ajuda da sua esposa Lélia Salgado.

[Teo · Rating 4 out of 5]

2018.08.14–2018.08.14

Salgado S (1990) Uncertain Grace, An