User:KnightCrown

= REZA (The Photographer) = REZA (Persian, رضا‎), is an International Award winning Iranian-French photographer.

A visual witness
Reza’s career began with studies in architecture. Following his passion for photography, he became an International award winning photographer. He takes his first photograph at 14 and publishes two years later, in high school, the newspaper Parvaz (flight). He clandestinely displays his photographs on the grids of the University of Tehran. For his artistic activism, he was arrested at the age of 22, jailed for three years and tortured for five months. In 1979, he left architecture to become a photojournalist and covered the Iranian Revolution for the Sipa Press agency and Newsweek magazine. He was finally forced into exile in 1981 for his photographs published in the international press. Then he decided to move to Paris, France. For nearly four decades, Reza has covered a large part of the globe for international media (Time Magazine, Stern, Newsweek, El Pais, Paris Match and Geo…), notably for National Geographic Magazine. His assignments have taken him to over a hundred countries. His photographs are testimony to the chaos of war, its ravages and the helplessness of human beings caught in the storm. They also tell the world's cultures, traditions, history and, most of all, Reza's infallible hope for a better world. Year, 1991 marks the beginning of a long and close collaboration with National Geographic, magazine for which he carries out many subjects. His photographs were the subject of 25 covers of the Magazine. The following year, Reza co-founded in Paris, with his wife Rachel Deghati, a writer, a studio around the image and words, the agency Webistan. Reza is quickly convinced that there are as many ways to tell a story as media, press publications, web-documentaries, exhibitions, installations in the public space, documentaries made by him or on his work, books and conferences are all complementary means of talking about a subject he is witnessing. Since its creation, its agency has helped to implement its different projects.

Committment
Since 1983 Reza has been a volunteer committed to the training in the language of image, of population from conflict-ridden societies to help them strive for a better world. In 1990, he interrupted his career as a photojournalist, and became a consultant to the United Nations in Afghanistan, for nine months in a program of reconstruction and assistance to the population in the Northern provinces of the country. He takes his cameras to start working for National Geographic Magazine, but pursues actions undertaken on a voluntary basis. In 1996 in Rwanda, he worked alongside UNICEF and the ICRC to continue a photo tracing operation, initiated by these two organizations allowing parents to find their children lost during the mass exodus from Rwanda to refugee camps. From the Democratic Republic of Congo 12,000 children's portraits are posted in IDP camps. In 1998, Reza got involved in a school construction for refugee children in Baku, Azerbaijan. In 2001, he founded Ainaworld (Persian for The Mirror), a new generation non-profit organization which opened a first center in Kabul, Afghanistan. Dedicated to educating and empowering Afghan, and mostly women and children through the development of educational tools and adapted media. Assuming that only the freedoms of the press, expression and opinion can advance the people on the road to peace. In 2009, after training 1,000 Afghans, including Massoud Hossaini, Pulitzer Prize 2012, the association became completely independent and Afghan-led. Reza has continued to conduct workshops to youths around the world (Italian and French suburbs, refugee camps in Iraqi Kurdistan, favelas in Buenos Aires, center for displaced youth in Bamako etc.). By founding the non-profit organization Reza Visual Academy, which seeks to form young people between 11 and 20 years in the language of the image through the photographic tool. Passive victims, they become visual witnesses and therefore actors in their destiny. His humanitarian work and photojournalism have been recognized by international institutions and universities, including George Washington University, Stanford University, Beijing University and the Sorbonne in Paris.

Exhibitions
Reza's photographs have been exhibited in major cities throughout the world. From monumental installations in the public space to more modest local exhibitions, Reza strives to make photography accessible to all. In 1998, he installed for the first time in public space, at the Carrousel du Louvre, an exhibition Mémoires d'exil. This is the beginning of a long series of original installations outside museums, giving everyone the opportunity to meet visual art and information. Thus, to cite only these, Destins Croisés, on the grids of the Jardins du Luxembourg in Paris in 2003, One World, One Tribe, first exhibition of the National Geographic Museum in Washington DC in 2006, War + Peace, exposed in 2009 at the Caen Memorial in Normandy and in 2011 on the banks of the Garonne in Toulouse. There are nearly 450 photographic exhibitions in France and abroad, including major installations on the Corniche in Doha (Qatar), in the major cities of Corsica, at Kew Gardens in London, at the UN headquarters in New York, Parliament in Brussels, as well as UNESCO, the Petit Palais museum and the banks of the Seine in Paris. In 2013, Reza has designed, Chants de café, the first 370-meter giant mural along the banks of the Seine facing the Musée d'Orsay, dedicated to coffee workers around the world. In 2015, he reiterated the same major installation entitled Dream of Humanity. It presents his photographic work on refugees around the world as well as the photographs taken by young Syrian refugees in a camp in Iraqi Kurdistan who have followed since the end of 2013 the photography training of her association Reza Workshops. In 2018, he exhibits his work Face to Face in China.

Conferences and Workshops
Each year, Reza is invited a dozen times to share his experience as a photojournalist and humanitarian actor in many local and international events. Festivals, universities, schools, meetings, seminars, are opportunities to share their commitment to visual education. As a teacher, he also gives masterclasses for professionals.

Some of these main interventions are:

MASTERCLASS INSTITUTE OF JOURNALISM PATSHALA _ BANGLADESH UNIVERSITY OF JOURNALISM OF BEIJING _ CHINA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES WISE - WORLD SUMMIT FOR INNOVATION FOR EDUCATION, DOHA_QATAR PHOTOIMAGE, SAO PAULO_BRAZIL INTERNATIONAL BIENNIAL OF CONTEMPORARY ART, SOUTH AMERICA, BUENOS AIRES UNIVERSITY OF THE EARTH, UNESCO, PARIS, FRANCE
 * Masterclass with World Press Photo (1990-2000)
 * Masterclass with World Press Photo (2001-2003)
 * THE BRITISH COUNCIL CONFERENCE, GENEVA, Conference on Post-Conflict Reconstruction (2010)
 * Lecture: The power of the image (2011)
 * Lecture: Photography for Humanity through e-learning (2012)
 * Conference (2016)

Universities

 * UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN ILLINOIS, USA, Conference (2011)
 * AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PARIS, Conference (2011)
 * UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CALIFORNIA (USC), LOS ANGELES, USA, Conference and Portfolio Reading (2016)
 * KEDGE BUSINESS SCHOOL, MARSEILLE, France, Conference (2016)
 * UNIVERSITY OF SYRACUSE, USA, Conference and panel: the media in the Syrian conflict (2016)
 * UNIVERSITY OF STANFORD, Conference (2018)
 * UNIVERSITY OF SABANCI, ISTANBUL, TURKEY, Conference (2018)

BUSINESS
 * ELIG - EUROPEAN LEARNING INDUS STRY GROUP, DUBLIN, Ireland, Conference (2012)
 * ANNUAL SEMINAR OF AN INTERNATIONAL CONSULTING COMPANY Conference:Milan, Italy (2011), Berlin, Germany (2012), Istanbul, Turkey (2013)
 * GOOGLE, PARIS, France, Conference (2017)
 * APPLE, PALO ALTO, USA, Conference (2018)

TEDx,

Conferences:
 * ''TEDx HEC: The power of photography to change the world (2013)
 * ''TEDx WORLDBANK: Ending poverty (2014)

INSTITUTIONS
 * CLUB FRONTLINES, LONDON, Conference: The power of the image at the service of social change (2009)
 * HIPA, LONDON, lecture: Photography for Humanity (2013)
 * SENATE, SYMPOSIUM ON THE ISLAM DES LUMIÈRES, PARIS, France, Conference: the example of Sufism (2013)
 * SOLIDAYS, PARIS, France, Conference (2015, 2017)
 * INDIAN PHOTORGAPHY FESTIVAL-HYDERBABAD, Portfolio Lecture and Reading (2017)
 * LENSIC THEATER, SANTA FE, USA, Conference (2017)
 * OECD, INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON DIVERSITY, PARIS, FRANCE, Conference (2018)

Documentaries
The encounter of Reza and Sebastian Junger with Commander Massoud. National Geographic, 52’ min. Emmy Award 2002 Looking back at Reza’s dedication: 30 years of photography for peace. National Geographic, 52’ min. Emmy Award Nomination Reza’s struggle to promote the freedom of expression and training of women in visual media in Afghanistan, through his NGO Aina. French TV TF1 Productions, 52’ min. Documentaries, portraits and short films made by the first Afghan camerawomen, trained by Aina. AINA Productions, 52’ min. Emmy Award Nomination Aina is a non-governmental organization committed to the education of children and the professional training of women in media and communication in Afghanistan. AINA Productions, 52’ min An interactive catalogue of photographs of Reza’s exhibition at the National Geographic museum, Washington D.C., from June to November 2006. Webistan Agency Productions. Throughout his pictures, the photographer Reza describes his experience of war and his hope for peace. Webistan Agency Productions, 8’ min. The initiatory journey of Reza and his son Delazad, from Beijing to Paris, in August 2008. National Geographic Channel, 5 x 26’ min. National Geographic film crew follows Reza through the Afghan mountains. He returns to the hideout where he took his famous portrait of Commander Massoud during the Russian invasions. National Geographic, 52’ min. By a close friend of Reza, Ali Badri. This documentary is a conversation between two men, two friends, two exiles. Mil Sabord Productions, 52’ min.
 * Into the forbidden zone - 2000
 * Reza : Shooting back – 2002
 * Reza, paroles de liberté - 2005
 * Afghanistan Unveiled – 2005
 * Aina, a human adventure - 2006
 * One World, One Tribe - 2006
 * In the eye of the storm - 2008
 * A Childhood Promise - 2008
 * Afghan Warrior - 2009
 * Parvaz – 2010

Web documentaries
Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the assassination of Commander Massoud, Reza joined the web documentary project produced by Arte Reportage. The web platform, «Afghanistan: 10 years, 100 viewpoints» provides daily broadcast of in-house produced videos, but also creations by young Afghan film-makers like the famous film-maker Barmak Akram and the ones below produced by Reza and Rachel Deghati. Through the first module “Resistance”, Reza shares his memories of a deep friendship with the late leader of the Afghan resistance. It brings a new perspective on the resilience of the Afghan people, the struggle of Massoud and his men against the Russian invaders and later the Taliban. Through photographs and videos, “The Southern Drug Route” traces the route of drugs from Afghanistan to Pakistan, a scourge in the heart of the Golden Crescent. Reza goes back over this major economic and political challenge of Afghan society, between culture and hell. In September 2001, the death of Massoud and the attacks on the World Trade Center set off the American intervention in Afghanistan. «In the heart of a UScamp», in the tribal regions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, the images show a real clash of cultures, through the story of Reza. Through “A Culture of War”, Reza, in the tribal zones between Afghanistan and Pakistan, focuses on the daily life of a village which entire economy is based on the production and sale of sophisticated weapons. There, the tradition of weapon making passes from father to son and the children skilful hands perfectly reproduce firearms. Journey in the heart of the Afridi’s tribe, one of the twelve Pashtun tribes. Through “The Sorrow of War”, the photojournalist Reza reveals some of his intimate visual and auditory memories of an Afghanistan scarred by decades of conflict. Reza recounts the story of war-wounded people who, despite everything, are still hoping for peace. For several months, Reza immersed himself into the traditional coffee fields and plantations of India, Colombia, Brazil, Guatemala, Ethiopia and South Sudan. Crossing paths with coffee producers, farmers and agronomists, these six video clips offer an exclusive look into the culture around coffee and the communities who produce it. •Production of 6 web documentaries •5 to 7 minute long videos •Photographs, videos and storytelling.
 * AFGHANISTAN: 10 YEARS, 100 VIEWPOINTS Arte Reportage Platform, Web, October 2011
 * RESISTANCE Uploaded on October 3, 2011
 * THE SOUTHERN DRUG ROUTE Uploaded on October 10, 2011
 * IN THE HEART OF A US CAMP Uploaded on October 17, 2011
 * A CULTURE OF WAR Uploaded on October 28, 2011
 * THE SORROW OF WAR Uploaded on October 31, 2011
 * SOUL OF COFFEE Web, September-December 2013

Awards & Distinctions

 * 1983 World Press Photo second prize
 * 1996 UNICEF Hope Prize for his work on Rwandan Refugee Camps
 * 2005 Chevalier de l'Ordre national du Mérite
 * 2006 Prince of Asturias Prize for being a representative of National Geographic Society
 * 2006 Missouri Honor Medal of best journalist
 * 2008 Senior fellow of the Ashoka Foundation
 * 2009 "Doctor Honoris Causa" from the American University of Paris (AUP) for his achievements in journalism and humanitarianism
 * 2009 Lucie Award for Achievement in Documentary from the New York-based Lucie Foundation
 * 2010 ICP (International Center of Photography),Infinity Award
 * 2010 Human Rights Award Special Mention “Flying from the nest”
 * 2013 Photography Appreciation Award, Dubai
 * 2013 National Geographic Society Explorer