A place where every photograph counts
How living in chaos shaped Andrew Quilty’s career
In 2013 Andrew Quilty was working as a freelance photographer in New York when he made the decision to head over to Afghanistan and capture the war. He wasn’t seeking adventure. He didn’t even know that much about Afghanistan. He just wanted to cross an experience off his list, as a photojournalist.
But he became so invested in Afghanistan that he found himself, four years later, calling the capital city of Kabul home. The photographs he’s taken during that time have earned him many accolades, including the Gold Walkley last year. And they’ve told the story of Afghanistan—not only as a war zone.
When taking pictures in the middle of gunfire, there isn’t a lot of time to consider what is and isn’t ethical.
Quilty downplays the scenario, saying his line of work is “like anything, after you’ve been doing it for a while it just becomes instinctive … and you’re not thinking so much as reacting to your instincts.”
Quilty has captured some of the most harrowing images of the war in Afghanistan with a rare forethought and gentleness. One photograph shows a teenage boy smelling flowers in a classroom. Another school shot shows little boys yelling—just like little boys do. He doesn’t try to make every photograph epic, guns a-blazing, with ammunition everywhere; it’s more about the little things.
“Life goes on in Kabul,” he says.
Quilty believes the empathy that comes through in his work is intrinsic. It cannot be learned or taught. Not everyone agrees his photos are empathetic, he says, but he doesn’t seem too bothered by it. Photography is subjective.
A private man, Quilty isn’t one to give too much of himself away and very rarely appears in front of the camera.
Building a home in Kabul that can serve as a safe space for Quilty to switch off from what he experiences in the field has been extremely important.
“My house in Kabul feels very comfortable to me now. It feels like home, I don’t feel tense there.”
Quilty enjoys living in Kabul in part because he finds himself immersed in the action there every day, as opposed to photographers and journalists who fly in and fly out.
“I can walk outside the door and feel like I’m in a place where every photograph counts.”
See more of Andrew Quilty’s work: @andrewquilty on Instagram.
