Sebastiao Salgado, award-winning Brazilian photographer, dies at age 81

Brazilian photographer and environmentalist Sebastiao Salgado, known for his award-winning images of nature and humanity, has died at age 81.

Instituto Terra, which was founded by him and his wife, confirmed the information Friday, but did not provide more details on the circumstances or where he died. The French Academy of Fine Arts, of which Salgado was a member, also confirmed his death.

The photographer had suffered from various health problems for many years after contracting malaria in the 1990s.

“Sebastiao was more than one of the best photographers of our time,” Instituto Terra said in a statement. “His lens revealed the world and its contradictions; his life, [brought] the power of transformative action.”

“We will continue to honour his legacy, cultivating the land, the justice and the beauty that he so deeply believed could be restored,” it added.

One of Brazil’s most famous artists, though he always insisted he was a photographer first, Salgado had his life and work portrayed in the documentary film The Salt of the Earth (2014), co-directed by his son, Juliano Ribeiro Salgado, and Wim Wenders.