Author Spotlight: Ron Haviv

Ron has been a professional photographer for 26 years. He has covered more than twenty-five conflicts and worked in over one hundred countries. Before he jumped into documenting conflict and raising awareness about human rights issues, Haviv was studying to be a journalist. He admitted that he had no interest in being a photographer. It was only when an uncle of his gave him a camera as a birthday present that he began to explore photography.

Working three jobs, one as a fashion photographer, Haviv began to gain exposure to photography. Later, as an intern for a small paper he was called on assignment to shoot. He went from mopping floors to crawling around the floor at City Hall and taking pictures. It was at that moment he decided photojournalism meant he would have to have a job where he sat in an office for eight hours a day. Looking back he realized, “I had no idea what it meant to be a photojournalist.”

Living in New York, Haviv began to meet other working photographers. Being surrounded by these artists who were so serious about their work gave him an opportunity to learn and grow. He told us how incredibly welcoming they were, and how photographers want to give back to the next generation.

Haviv shared with us a story from a time he was covering Gay Pride in NYC.

“I was covering the Gay Pride Parade in NY and saw this photographer who looked liked he walked off a movie set. His name was Chris Morris. I asked Chris where he was going next and he said Panama. I said that’s amazing, I’m going to Panama too. I had no idea where Panama was. I had to go research what was happening in Panama. I went to the NY Post to ask them if they would send me to Panama to cover the election and for some reason they said yes. A week later the Post fired their managing editor and all travel was cancelled. I lost my assignment. I ran into Chris again by coincidence. I was bummed, but he said you know I normally travel with my wife, but she isn’t going, and the airline has a two-for-one, so I have an extra ticket, and extra bed and an extra seat in the car. He turned to Santa Claus right before me. Besides the obvious of my expenses, it was a chance to work with one of the best photographers in the world.”

Heading to Panama allowed him to create something show worthy. He took a photograph of the VP elect being beaten by paramilitaries which ended up on the cover of Time, Newsweek, US News and World Report all in the same week. As he puts it, “it solidified my job with AP.” He ended up turning down a full-time gig with AP because he wanted to be freelance. He didn’t realize until 6 months later, when the US invaded Panama, how impactful those photos were. The president actually mentioned the photos as a reason for the invasion.

After Panama, he headed to Berlin for the tearing down of the wall, Liberia for the Civil war, and South Africa for the end of Apartheid. He even found himself as an Iraqi prisoner when he went to Iraq for the first gulf war. It was at this point he realized one of the things he was drawn to were events where history was being made, and most often these events were happening in times of violence. These experiences allowed him to truly understand the role of the photographer and it’s ability to play a part in people understanding what is going on.

As he traveled around the world capturing history as it unraveled, Ron was increasingly interacting with people immersed in conflict. He recounted the following story to us:

“There was a young girl on the train who was crying and I asked her why she was crying. She said, ‘This is the end of Yugoslavia.’ I told her there was no way Europe would allow a violent breakaway. I then spent the next five years covering what she said would happen.”

Obviously, experiencing these intense situations on a regular basis can take its toll. Most people are fortunate enough to never experience such chaos and disruption and Ron chooses to run into these events head first. He realized early that talking about your personal experiences is different than talking about what you documented and what you wanted to tell. He knows the importance of understanding how, as a journalist, witnessing and partaking in these events, even silently, this work affects the psyche. While it didn’t happen immediately, Ron now understands the impacts of PTSD, how it affects people, and how to treat it.

When it comes to making books, Ron’s first book developed after spending time in Bosnia. Titled Blood and Honey, it was his first monograph and he struggled to find a publisher. A number of publishers had already published books on Bosnia but he kept pitching. His time there had created a complete visual record of the big and small events alike. He wanted the book to be labeled not as a photography book but as a history book. When he finally got it published it sold out in six months.

When Ron “found some film,” The Lost Rolls project began. We at Blurb are thrilled to be working him on this project. Creating a book, a magazine, and a series of exhibitions starting at beginning of November, The Lost Rolls is a look at the world of analog film and history. A story of forgotten moments and accidental discoveries. It is the enticing and mystifying experience of revisiting the past through the lens of one of the most important conflict photographers in American history. Be sure to check in to our blog and thelostrolls.com to learn about the project, release dates and events that will be taking place over the next few months.

Photo of Ron Haviv was taken by Clay Enos.