Sharjah Deputy Ruler Inaugurates Sir Don McCullin’s “Life, Death, & Everything in Between” Exhibition in Athens
His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Chairman of the Sharjah Media Council, has inaugurated the exhibition of world-renowned photographer Sir Don McCullin in Athens, the Greek capital. Titled “Life, Death, & Everything in Between,” the exhibition is organised by the Athens Photo World Awards in collaboration with the Xposure International Photography Festival.
During his tour, H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed explored the exhibition halls and reviewed select works from over five decades of McCullin’s artistic career. The exhibition features a compelling mix of photographs capturing harrowing human moments from conflict zones such as Vietnam, Cambodia, and Lebanon, alongside images depicting peaceful scenes in the English countryside, Africa, India, and Indonesia. The Sheikh commended the profound humanitarian message embedded in McCullin’s photographs, highlighting the ways in which his lens captures the full spectrum of human suffering and heroism.
“Life, Death, & Everything in Between” invites visitors on a profound visual journey. It begins with McCullin’s early work in impoverished neighborhoods of London, traverses through stark war imagery, and concludes with later works centered on tranquility and beauty. The exhibit serves not only as a testament to McCullin’s exceptional mastery of visual composition but also to his unique talent for conveying intense human emotion, which cemented his global reputation and earned him the title of “Sir” for his immense contributions to photography.
Sir Don McCullin is celebrated as an icon of documentary photography, with a fifty-year career chronicling wars and humanitarian crises. His unwavering commitment and courage have brought awareness to the harshest realities, even as he faced serious injuries and capture while documenting conflict zones. His work remains deeply humanitarian in nature.
The collaboration between the Xposure International Photography Festival—held annually by the Sharjah Government Media Bureau—and the Athens Photo World Awards emphasizes the powerful role of photography in documentation, truth-telling, and highlighting the human dimension. The rising global status of Xposure over the last ten years has made it a major international platform for photographers to share impactful visual stories.
In a notable initiative, the exhibition of Sir Don McCullin will evolve into a permanent exhibition at the MOMus–Thessaloniki Museum of Photography in Athens. This move deepens artistic collaboration and celebrates the pioneers and exceptional achievements within the field of photography.
On the occasion, H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed presented Sir Don McCullin with a special edition Leica “Monochrom” camera featuring the name and emblem of Sharjah. This limited-edition camera was created expressly for the Xposure International Photography Festival.
In addition, H.H. Sheikh Sultan bin Ahmed visited the Acropolis Museum, one of the world’s most important archaeological museums. The museum, spanning over 25,000 square metres and housing more than 4,000 artefacts from the Classical and Roman periods, is divided into three main sections: everyday life in ancient Athens, prominent Parthenon sculptures including parts of its famous frieze, and masterpieces from the Classical period such as the original Caryatid sculptures (Acropolis maidens) from the 5th century BC.
The Sheikh also studied the museum’s unique architectural design, which incorporates glass floors for direct views of the Acropolis, and noted its advanced technologies for the display and preservation of artefacts—including a natural lighting system specially adapted to showcase marble sculptures.
Team V.4-EM-UAE
