Alex Webb (b. 1952) is an acclaimed American photographer known for his richly layered, color-saturated images of life in Latin America, the Caribbean, and beyond. Raised in New England, Webb became interested in photography during high school and furthered his training at the Apeiron Workshops, where he met Magnum photographers Bruce Davidson and Charles Harbutt. He later studied history and literature at Harvard while also taking photography courses at the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts.
In 1974, Webb began working as a professional photojournalist and joined Magnum Photos as an associate in 1976. Initially focused on small-town life in the American South, he soon shifted his attention to Latin America and the Caribbean, where he discovered the vividness of color photography. A transformative trip to Haiti in 1979, inspired by Graham Greene’s The Comedians, set him on a lifelong path of exploring complex, vibrant cultures through a deeply observational, color-driven lens. As Webb put it, "I only know how to approach a place by walking… trying to remain confident that the unexpected... awaits just around the corner."
Webb has photographed around the world for publications such as GEO, Time, and The New York Times Magazine. He has received numerous awards, including the Overseas Press Club Award (1980), W. Eugene Smith Grant (1990), Guggenheim Fellowship (2007), and others from the NEA, Hasselblad Foundation, and Leica.
His work has been widely exhibited at institutions like the Walker Art Center, the International Center of Photography, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. His photographs are in many public and private collections, and he has published over a dozen books, beginning with Hot Light/Half-Made Worlds (1986). His 2014 book Memory City, created with his wife and fellow photographer Rebecca Norris Webb, reflects on memory, place, and the fading era of analog photography. The couple lives and works in New York.
Other works available upon request.
