Images of war

Throughout his 50-year career, photographer Don McCullin has photographed conflicts in Vietnam, Cambodia, Germany and Iraq.

He’s been held prisoner by Idi Amin’s soldier’s in Uganda, blinded by CS gas during the Troubles in Northern Ireland and his camera stopped a bullet and saved his life when he was shot at in Cambodia.

Along the way, McCullin has created a visual definition of modern conflict – among his most iconic images are the instantly-recognisable black-and-white haunting portraits of US soldiers in Vietnam and famine victims in Biafra and Bangladesh.

Portrait of thoughtful US Marine in Hue, Vietnam, 1968

Source: By permission the Imperial War Museum

Portrait of thoughtful US Marine in Hue, Vietnam, 1968

The exhibition Shaped by War: Photographs by Don McCullin, which is coming to the Imperial War Museum in London after a run at the Imperial War Museum North, doesn’t shy away from the impact of McCullin’s work.

The exhibition features photography from East Berlin, Vietnam, Cambodia, the 2003 invasion of Iraq and famines in Biafra and Bangladesh.

Most of the black-and-white images have been handprinted by McCullin and the show will also features lightbox images, large-format prints and two digital portraits of Victoria Cross recipient Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry.

 Don McCullin’s damaged Nikon F Camera, hit by a bullet from an AK-47 in Cambodia.

Source: By permission Don McCullin

Don McCullin’s damaged Nikon F Camera, hit by a bullet from an AK-47 in Cambodia.

Also on show will be objects including the US army helmet McCullin wore in Vietnam and the Nikon camera that saved his life in 1968.

Shaped by War: Photographs by Don McCullin, is at the Imperial War Museum in London from 7 October 2011-15 April 2012.

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