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London. Photo by James McNaught.

For speaking inquiries please email. For a list of speaking clientele download the C.V.

Click here to download Giulia Cassoro’s thesis on MCB for the Accademia di Belle Arti di Catania.

Michael Christopher Brown is an artist utilizing and challenging the documentary image to draw attention to some of the most pressing humanitarian issues of our time. From the chaotic rise of eastern China, to the Arab Spring revolutions, from the wars of Eastern Congo (DRC), to the conflict in Israel and the West Bank, from socioeconomic issues in Cuba, to homelessness in Los Angeles.

Born and raised in the Skagit Valley, a farming community in Washington State, Michael’s family worked in the health industry. His father was a physician, his mother a dietician and his sister a nurse. His father, who built a darkroom in their home and frequently photographed the family, taught Michael photography and occasionally worked overseas while documenting his patients, operations and journeys. Michael’s parents would bring he and his sister to Mexico where they worked in orphanages, and the family hosted dozens of exchange students from around the world.

After studying photography at the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University, graduating with an MA in 2003, Michael worked at newspapers and magazines before becoming known for pioneering the use of a smart phone as a primary reporting device, primarily in conflict zones. His seminal documentation of the 2011 Libyan Revolution, a road trip through a war zone integrating imagery, texts, and audio from his phone, led to the short film and monograph Libyan Sugar, which won the Paris Photo First Book Award and the International Center of Photography Infinity Award for Artist’s Book. 

The use of a smart phone in humanitarian contexts was initially controversial. Michael has continued to challenge the status quo, in both his recording and delivery methodologies involving the documentary image, and has at times received extensive criticism on his Instagram and elsewhere for his work on Skid Row, during the George Floyd protests and following his release of the novel AI reportage illustration work 90 Miles.

A former associate at Magnum Photos, Michael spent much of his career as a photographer working on assignment for publications like The New York Times Magazine and National Geographic Magazine, where he has worked both on contract and as a freelancer since 2004.

While working commercially for clients including Land Rover, U.S. Army, Chopard and others, Michael excels at providing unconventional solutions in challenging situations and locations, having spent two decades photographing and directing across six continents and conflict areas in the Middle East and Central Africa, including from his former home base in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

 

In Tanzania with Jane Goodall. Photo by Paul Tullis.

 

Michael loves collaborating with teams to create narrative, emotional stories with impactful imagery that feels both authentic and cinematic. His passion for researching the unique needs of each commission, for utilizing natural light as well as his ability to quickly deliver in a variety of situations, with both actors and non-actors, follows from his extensive press background. He is also well versed in shooting over-the-shoulder on live action productions, and directing video in tandem with making photographs.

Michael is co-directing a film based in Cuba and is writing a screenplay for a feature based in Congo (DRC). He was a main character and cinematographer for the Michael Mann directed HBO documentary Witness: Libya. His previous motion work was featured in several other conflict based documentaries including Hondros, Which way is the Front Line from Here? The Life and Time of Tim Hetherington, The Prosecutors and This is Congo. 

As a Speaker, Michael has shared his experiences with a variety of audiences, including educational and government institutions, foundations, festivals, non-profits and creative agencies. His talks take you on his personal journey from his childhood in Washington State, where his parents hosted dozens of exchange students and worked in orphanages overseas, to his exploration of geopolitical stories over the past two decades. With his diverse archive of photography and film work, he shares the hard-earned lessons he and other photographers have learned while navigating the world’s conflicts.

Watch a recent profile on Michael’s AI work and more below:

 
 

C L I E N T S


AARP. Aga Khan Museum. Al Jazeera. Amazon Music. Amnesty International. Bloomberg Businessweek. CSIS. Chopard. Conde Nast Portfolio. Conservation International. D La Repubblica. Der Spiegel. Eastern Congo Initiative. Economist. ESPN. Facebook. Financial Times. Fondazione Oelle. Foreign Policy. Fortune. FT Weekend Magazine. Front Line Defenders. GEO. Getty Images. Harper’s Magazine. Harvard Public Health. HBO. Hemispheres. Hyperice. IISS. Ishkar. Land Rover. Land Securities. Le Monde. Live Nation. Magnum Photos. Memac Ogilvy. Men’s Journal. Mobil. Moleskine. Monocle. MSNBC. National Geographic Magazine. New York Magazine. Newsweek. Nike. Nodle. Oprah Winfrey Network. PDN. Pipette. Polka. Save the Children. Smithsonian. Smith & Nephew. Sony. Stanford Medicine X. SYPartners. Tecno Mobile. The Atlantic. The Nature Conservancy. The New Republic. The New York Times. The New York Times Magazine. The New York Times Style Magazine. Time. United Nations. U.S. Army. U.S. Department of State. Vanity Fair. Ventiquattro. Vice. Vogue. Wall Street Journal. Wired. Young & Rubicam.

 
 

USA. Photo by Lauryn Gerstle

 

C O M M I S S I O N S

AL JAZEERA - Hear the human story

BLOOMBERG - Virunga National Park

GENTLEMEN’S JOURNAL - Chopard

LAND ROVER - Ultimate Vistas

LE MONDE - Election Portraits

LE MONDE - Bruce’s Beach

MSNBC – Hell And High Water

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Microdosing Psychedelics

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Psilocybe Mushrooms

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Circling Alaska

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC – Congo

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Congo Psychiatric Hospital 

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Northern Giant

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Coronavirus + Skid Row

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Tanganyika

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - The Redwoods

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC – Congo + Cannabis 

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Young, Angry & Wired

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Fungi

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC - Supershrooms

NEWSWEEK – Congo

SMITHSONIAN - Cuba

SMITHSONIAN - Kashgar

SMITHSONIAN - Libya

SONY - A Different Great Divide

THE ATLANTIC - China Makes, The World Takes

THE ATLANTIC - Mr. Zhang Builds his Dream Town

THE ATLANTIC - Made in China

THE NEW REPUBLIC - Cairo

THE NEW REPUBLIC - Central African Republic

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Jane Goodall

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Jeffrey Wright

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Havana

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - African Front

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - The Deported

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Kenya ICC

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Madot

THE NEW YORK TIMES T MAGAZINE - Nebraska

THE NEW YORK TIMES T MAGAZINE - Andrea Fraser

TIME - China’s High-Speed Rail

TIME - Hurricane Sandy

TIME - Ordos

TIME - An iPhone in the DRC

VOGUE - Reggae Revival

VANITY FAIR - Directors

 
 

Congo (D.R.C.). Photo by Michael McCabe.

 

P R E S S

ABC NEWS - Libyan Sugar

ALESSIA GLAVIANO - Interview

ARTRIBUNE - MCB Retrospective

AVAUNT MAGAZINE - Goma Airport

AVAUNT MAGAZINE - Interview

A SMALL VOICE - Conversation (audio)

BBC PODCAST - Conversation (audio)

BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHOTOGRAPHY - Libyan Sugar

CAPTURE QUEUE - Interview

CBS - Skid Row

CNN - Libyan Sugar

CYBERDOGZ - Conversation (audio)

DECOUVRIR LA VIE - Interview

DER TAGESSPIEGEL - Interview

DIGITAL PHOTO PRO - Interview

EL PAIS - Yo Soy Fidel

EVERLUTIONARY - Conversation (audio)

EXIBART - MCB Retrospective

EYE OF PHOTOGRAPHY - Yo Soy Fidel

FILMMAKER’S PODCAST - Protests (audio)

FOAM MAGAZINE - Libyan Sugar

FONDAZIONE OELLE - MCB Retrospective (video)

FOREIGN POLICY - Night Creatures

FSTOPPERS - Congo

FOTO.NO – Sidi Bilal

GRRYO - Interview

GUARDIAN - The Airport

GUP - Interview

HARPER’S MAGAZINE - Sirocco

HBO - Interview

HOUSTON CENTER FOR PHOTOGRAPY - Libyan Sugar

HUCK - Yo Soy Fidel

HUNGRY EYE - Interview

JETSET - Interview

LEFT FIELD PROJECT - Interview

LENSCULTURE - Afghanistan

LENSCULTURE - Libyan Sugar

LENSCULTURE - Yo Soy Fidel

MELODIE & RHYTHMUS - Skid Row

MOLESKINE - MCB at Work

MEN’S JOURNAL - Libyan Sugar

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC ITALY - Interview

PDN - Yo Soy Fidel

PHOTO BRIGADE - Interview

PHOTOGRAPH MAGAZINE - Libyan Sugar

PHOTOGRAPH MAGAZINE - Libyan Sugar #2

PH MUSEUM - Interview

RENCONTRES ARLES - Yo Soy Fidel

REPORTAGE - Interview

REVUE 21 - Kivu, Mined Land

RUSSIA TODAY - Sakhalin Island

SAVE THE CHILDREN - Jordan Workshop (video)

SICILIAN POST - Interview

SMITHSONIAN - Goma Airport

THE NEW YORK TIMES - Frontline Operations in Africa

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE - Best Books

TIME - Best Photo Books

TIME - Libyan Sugar

TIME - The War in Libya

VANITY FAIR - Libyan Sugar

VANTAGE - Interview

VICE - Interview

VICE - Interview 2

VISUAL JOURNALISTS - Interview

VISUAL REVOLUTIONARY - Part 1 (audio)

VISUAL REVOLUTIONARY - Part 2 (audio)

VOICES OF PHOTOGRAPHY - Interview

WASHINGTON POST - Libyan Sugar

WASHINGTON POST - Yo Soy Fidel

 
 

Alaska. Photo by Roman Dial.

 
 
 

Kabul. Photo by Jared Moossy.