Born in Morpeth, UK in 1953, Tom Stoddart began his photographic
career working on his local newspaper in the northeast of England.
In 1978, Stoddart moved to London and began working freelance for
such influential publications as The Sunday Times and Time
Magazine.
Self-taught, Stoddart has drawn elements of inspiration from such
prescient photographers as Henri Cartier-Bresson, mixing elements
of humanism, information and a sense of capturing the quintessence
of a moment in his work. As a result, Stoddart is highly regarded
for his emotionally charged eyewitness reportage of pivotal events
around the globe, works which rise above sheer documentation to
bring a human conscience to bear on their subjects. Regardless of
the rigours of situation
or location (in 1992 he suffered serous injury in Sarajevo while
covering the war in Yugoslavia), Stoddart has continually provided
exceptional images documenting events as far-ranging as the
Chernobyl aftermath, Tony Blair's historic first election campaign
(for which Stoddart was given exclusive access), the lives of
Chinese child gymnasts, and the AIDs epidemic in Africa.
A founding member of the World Photographic Academy, Stoddart has
won numerous awards, including consecutive years (1991-1992) as
Nikon Photographer of the Year, the 1995 Visa D'Or for his work
Sarajevo Mother & Child, and the 2002 Nikon Press
Awards Feature Photographer of the Year. In 2005, Stoddart was
awarded Best Photography Book by the Pictures of the Year
International judging panel for his work iWITNESS.