These two images are from a series in which I made my own takes of the infamous National Geographic photo of Sharbut Gula (otherwise known as “Afghan Girl”), taken by Steve McCurry. This photo has always amazed me.

When it was taken in 1984, 12-year-old Sharbut was living in a refugee camp in Pakistan after her family had been killed by Soviet bombs. In 2002, National Geographic photographers found Sharbut once again. They showed her this world famous portrait, and took her photograph a second time.

So to produce this first image, I printed a severely overexposed version of the original photograph. I then drew on the print with marker, scanned it, and in Photoshop I experimented with color, contrast, transparency, etc. on a variety of layers. The final product is bright and piercing, reflecting her childhood (which lacked such bright innocence) and her piercing gaze.


This next image is a combination of black, red and green cutouts, newspaper, marker and the original photo. I wanted this piece to show that the Sharbut’s portrait—especially her green eyes—resonated with the world through the media.