Sebastião Salgado and His Book Children

A World in Their Eyes

Black and white portrait of Sebastião Salgado, the renowned photographer, wearing a dark suit and looking solemnly at the camera against a plain dark background.

On May 23rd, 2025, Sebastião Salgado passed away at the age of 81. One of the greatest contemporary photographers, he used his lens to tell stories that crossed borders and touched hearts.

His work captured the beauty and fragility of our planet—and the people who live on it.

Among his most moving works is “Children”, published by TASCHEN. This book gathers 90 black-and-white portraits of refugee and migrant children taken between 2000 and 2016. Small faces, big eyes, lives marked by war, poverty, and forced displacement. And yet, never portrayed with pity—Salgado’s gaze is filled with dignity, respect, and a deep sense of humanity.

“Children” is a powerful reminder that childhood is not always carefree—but also that hope can be found in the most unexpected places: in a smile that refuses to disappear, in eyes that still dream of a future.

Salgado has created many other essential works for those who love photography with a soul:
– Workers – a tribute to human labor
– Exodus – his monumental project on global migration
– Genesis – a journey into the untouched beauty of our planet
– Amazônia – a visual homage to the rainforest and its people

Beyond photography, Salgado’s legacy lives on through the Instituto Terra, which he founded with his wife Lélia to reforest thousands of hectares in Brazil.

For those of us who work with and for children, like here at Scimparello, Children is a visual experience that hits straight to the heart. It’s a call to pay attention, to remember—and to never stop seeing the kids, everywhere, for who they truly are.

Double-page spread from Sebastião Salgado’s book “Children,” showing two black and white portraits of young African children. The child on the left stands with hands on hips, wearing a striped top and a skirt, while the child on the right sits against a textured wall, smiling slightly, wearing a simple dress with crossed straps.

Double-page spread from Sebastião Salgado’s book “Children,” showing two black and white portraits. On the left, a young boy with a serious expression wears a patterned hooded jacket. On the right, a smiling boy poses shirtless against a tree, holding a handmade ball.

taschen.com