Capturing frailty of life

When former President George H.W. Bush cited a photograph of civil unrest in Panama as one of the reasons the U.S. invaded the country in 1989, Ron Haviv knew his work mattered.

Haviv took that photo.

After studying to be a writer and then training himself to use a camera instead, Haviv has become a world-traveled, award-winning photojournalist. This weekend Haviv will deliver the latest lecture in the Newport Beach Public Library Foundation’s speaker series.

He got his start freelancing on New York’s streets and later ended up in Panama when Gen. Manuel Noriega suppressed the country’s elections with military force.

A photo Haviv shot of a political candidate being beaten by paramilitary forces landed on the covers of Time and Newsweek.

“It was then that it struck me that photographs can play a role in helping to educate, give information and have some sort of an impact in changing the process on the ground,” Haviv said.

He’s been around the world, but his most recent work has been in Darfur and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where millions have been killed or displaced by civil war.

Haviv will open an exhibit on his photos from Darfur on Sunday in Los Angeles, and his work in the Congo will be part of a traveling exhibit beginning in April.

When he shares his work, Haviv said he tries to humanize his subjects so people don’t see them as statistics or foreigners with no connection to them. What the work has given him, he said, is a recognition of the frailty of human life.

“I think that’s probably the most powerful observation, just how quickly people go from rich to poor, from fed to starving, and from alive to dead,” he said.

Haviv will discuss his work Friday and Saturday at the Newport Beach Central Library, 1000 Avocado Ave.

For information or for tickets, go to www.nbplfoundation.org or call (866)301-2411.dpt.09-haviv-mug-BPhotoInfoRG1OOKSJ20060309ivu7nfkn(LA)