VII
On September 9, 2001 at a photography festival in southern France, seven great friends—Alexandra Boulat, Ron Haviv, James Nachtwey, Christopher Morris, Antonin Kratochvil, John Stanmeyer and I—launched a new photo agency that we called VII. Much has been written about VII, little of it by me or the other founding members. Sometime in the future I will publish more about VII on this site. In the meantime, here are some early images from our scrapbook and two publications that celebrate the agency then and now.
VII Foundation
The VII Foundation is an independent charitable and education non-profit organization registered in New York that was conceived by Gary Knight and Ron Haviv in 2001 when they co-founded the VII Photo Agency. The Association is registered as a US based 501C3.
The VII Foundation has a broad remit to support, initiate and participate in projects that concern environmental, social, health and human rights issues with an ambition to effect change and seek solutions through communication and education.
The Frontline Club, London
With its history rooted in the freelance video news industry, the Frontline Club has drawn together a diverse group of people who share a passion for current affairs.
Set up by Vaughan Smith in 2003 in honour of colleagues at the Frontline News Television agency who died pursuing their work, the Frontline Club quickly became a centre for a diverse group of people united by their passion for quality journalism and by their dedication to ensuring that stories that fade from headlines are kept in sharp focus. The Frontline Club exists to promote freedom of expression and support journalists, cameramen, and photographers who risk their lives in the course of their work.
The Frontline Club is a social enterprise that contains two entities—the Frontline Club Charitable Trust (FCCT) and the Frontline Club Limited (FC).
FCCT delivers an extensive programme of public events bringing together many of the world’s best journalists, photographers, filmmakers, and thinkers. Its aim is to promote engagement and dialogue on international affairs, to champion independent journalism, and to provide a diverse range of training for journalists and other media workers. It is also home to The Frontline Fund, formerly the Fixers Fund, and the Frontline Freelance Register, a self-help group for conflict freelancers.
I currently serve on the Board of Trustees of The Frontline Club Charitable Trust
World Press Photo Foundation & Award
I have been privileged to judge the World Press Photo Awards 4 times, and chair the jury twice, on the last occasion in 2014. I am currently a Consultant to the World Press Foundation in the United States.