Harry Benson: Picturing History at the Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens

Harry Benson’s photographs at the Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens are a mix of Politics/Presidents/Civil Rights along with a few Musicians/Sports Legends/Celebrities you might recognize. Hopefully the photographs will remind you of special moments in history… and will bring back happy memories…  or even introduce you to an era before you were born…

“Harry Benson’s photographs at the Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens are a mix of Politics/Presidents/Civil Rights along with a few Musicians/Sports Legends/Celebrities you might recognize. Hopefully the photographs will remind you of special moments in history… and will bring back happy memories…  or even introduce you to an era before you were born…”

Scottish born photographer Harry Benson CBE began his career on London’s Fleet Street in the early 60’s. After arriving in New York with The Beatles in 1964, he never looked back. He began working for LIFE magazine in 1967 and became its most published photographer during the following 30 years. His photographs have also appeared in publications including Time, Fortune, New York Magazine, Newsweek, Vanity Fair, Quest, French Vogue, Paris Match, Forbes, Town & Country, Architectural Digest, The New York Times, and The London Sunday Times Magazine.

In 2009 Harry was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for service to photography. He has received Honorary Doctorates from Glasgow University & Glasgow School of Art; St. Andrews University, Scotland; and Glasgow Caledonian University. In 2017 he received the LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD from The International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York and was also inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame in St. Louis.. Harry has received two Leica Medals of Excellence; The LUCIE Award for Lifetime Achievement; two Magazine Photographer of the Year Awards from the NPPA ; and he is an Honorary Fellow of London’s Royal Photographic Society.

With over 40 one-man exhibitions and 17 published books, Harry’s latest book “PAUL“ was published in July 2022 by TASCHEN to celebrate Paul McCartney’s 80th birthday.  Photographs in private collections and museums include The Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, Washington D.C.; The National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland; Addison Gallery of American Art, Andover, MA.; The Scottish Parliament Collection, Edinburgh; Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth, Hanover, NH.; The International Photography Hall of Fame, St. Louis; The University Collections, St. Andrews, Scotland; The Hearst Collection, New York City; and World Chess Hall of Fame, St. Louis.

HARRY BENSON: SHOOT FIRST, the documentary of Harry’s career released by Magnolia Pictures to five star reviews is currently available on Hulu.

Harry has photographed many of the most historic events of the last half of the 20th century including The Berlin Wall going up and coming down; pro-and-anti-Vietnam War protests; the Civil Rights James Meredith March with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; Senator Robert Kennedy’s assassination; the Gulf War in Iraq; the Afghan/Russian conflict; Starvation in Somalia; USA for Africa/We Are the World. World leaders include thirteen U.S. presidents from Eisenhower to Biden with first ladies including Jacqueline Kennedy; Sir Winston Churchill; President Charles de Gaulle; Princess Diana and Prince Charles; The King of Spain; P.M. Margaret Thatcher; Israel’s Golda Meier; The Shah of Iran; Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. Artists/authors/actors/musicians include Muhammed Ali; Andy Warhol; Francis Bacon; Truman Capote; Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn; Halston; Joe Namath; Alfred Hitchcock; Norman Mailer; Bobby Fischer; Spike Lee; Jack Nicholson; Frank Sinatra; Elizabeth Taylor; Kate Moss; Amy Winehouse; Dolly Parton; Ray Charles; Barbra Streisand; The Who; James  Brown; and The Rolling Stones. Harry’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II taken in Buckingham Palace in 2014 and commissioned by the Scottish National Portrait Gallery is their official portrait of the Queen.

Harry’s wife, Gigi, has worked with him on his books and exhibitions for over 50 years. Their daughters, Wendy Benson Landes and Tessa Benson Tooley, along with their families, live and work in Los Angeles.