The exhibition Maelstrom of photojournalist Philip Jones Griffiths at Howard Greenberg gallery in New York covers his work on the Vietnam War and the conflict in Northern Ireland during the 1970s.

Griffiths is best known for his wartime photography, particularly his 1971 book Vietnam Inc., which was crucial in challenging America’s attitudes about the war in Vietnam. His photographs of Northern Ireland follow in the same detailed tradition of his examination of Vietnam, capturing in striking images the upheaval of a domestic war and its political and social ramifications.

Born in Rhuddlan, Wales, in 1936, Philip Jones Griffiths studied pharmacology in Liverpool, while photographing part-time for the Manchester Guardian. In 1961, he became a full-time freelancer for the London Observer covering the Algerian War in 1962 and then moved on to Central Africa and Asia. He began his seminal coverage of Vietnam in 1966, dedicating himself to documenting their culture and traditions. He was the first western journalist to enter the country when the war finished and returned every year until his death. His three year documentation of the war culminated in Vietman, Inc. which is considered one of most detailed surveys of any conflict of the twentieth century. Through graphic black and white images, Jones examines the U.S. armed invasion of Southeast Asia, illustrating the true horrors of war.

Closer to home Griffiths photographed changing Britain in the 1950s and 1960s. With an uncanny sense of composition, timing, and point of view, Griffiths photographed coal miners in Wales, the Beatles in Liverpool, and anti-war protests on the streets of London.
He showed the disparities in class and culture while revealing dignity in the most dire situations: war, poverty, and political strife. He continued his study of social and political situations through his coverage of the conflict in Northern Ireland, photographing the startling absurdities of daily life.

During his lengthy career his assignments took him to over 120 countries and his photographs appeared in every major magazine. An associate member of Magnum from 1966, he became a member in 1971, then in 1980 moved to New York to assume the presidency of the organization, a post he held for five years. He continued to publish books on Vietnam: Vietnam Peace and Agent Orange which is a record of the horrifying
effect of Dioxin on multiple generations of Vietnamese. In 1997, he was honored for Achievement in Photography at the 5th Annual Lucie Awards in New York. He died at his home in London on March 19, 2008.

Gilles Decamps

On view until April 23rd

Howard Greenberg Gallery
41 East 57th Street
Suite 1406
New York , NY 10022