Stanley Greene –
A Photographic Life Guided by Compassion and Truth

Stanley Greene (1949–2017) began his creative journey as a painter—but his path took a pivotal turn in 1971 when, already active in the anti–Vietnam War movement and the Black Panthers, he was encouraged by photographer W. Eugene Smith to pursue formal studies in photography at the School of Visual Arts and the San Francisco Art Institute.

Setting out initially as a documentarian of youth culture, Greene captured the raw energy of San Francisco’s punk scene across the 1970s and ’80s in a series titled The Western Front. His evolution from “dilettante”—as he described himself—to committed photojournalist came into sharp focus when he found himself in East Berlin in 1989, seizing the moment as the Berlin Wall came down to create the globally iconic image “Kisses to All.”

Embracing conflict zones as his new arena of expression, Greene documented wars and humanitarian crises from Chechnya to Iraq, Rwanda to Afghanistan, with a powerful moral gaze and unflinching empathy. He stood undeterred in places where others fled—immersed in the lives of his subjects, forging deep connections during harrowing moments.

Over his career, Greene received international acclaim, including five World Press Photo Awards, the prestigious W. Eugene Smith Award (2004), a Lifetime Achievement Visa d’Or Award (2016), the Aftermath Grant (2013), Alicia Patterson Fellowship (1998), and a Katrina Media Fellowship (2006).

His personal monograph, Black Passport (2010), juxtaposes intimate personal images with his journalism—revealing the man behind the camera and exploring the emotional toll of carrying “both worlds.” In Open Wound: Chechnya 1994–2003, he laid bare the human impact of post‑Soviet war with visceral, painting‑inspired visuals that made Chechnya’s suffering impossible to ignore.

Time described Greene as more than a war photographer—calling him a poet in images, forever seeking dignity, justice, and larger truths in every frame.

Greene passed away in Paris in May 2017 after a long battle with cancer—leaving behind a legacy defined by empathy, artistry, and a radical refusal to look away.