When Photography Turned to Art: Remembering Van Leo on His 100th Birthday!

via Great Egypt

As a new-fangled invention, photography came to Egypt just a little before the 1900s. It would take a little more time, though, to turn into an art form by an incredibly talented visionary.

You don’t have to take any guesses about who that visionary is—it’s none other than the legendary Van Leo, of course!

If you don’t know the story of this photographer and his legacy, here it is: Everything started approximately 100 years ago, on November 20^th1921, when the Armenian Van Leo (born as Levon Boyadjian) was born. Just a toddler, he moved with his family from Turkey to Egypt to escape possible persecution due to the family’s ethnic background, and promptly began an eclectic and ever-creative life.

After wrapping up his schooling career at the American University at Cairo in 1940, Leo apprenticed with a photographer before opening a photography studio with his brother in 1941.

Fast forward to 1947, and Van Leo opens his own studio, Studio Van Leo, where he eventually became the leading portrait photographer for Cairo’s stars and public figures, such as Omar El-Sherif, Sherihan, Taha Hussein, and more!

It’s crucial to note that Van Leo transformed photography to be more than just a method of documentation. Instead, he made it an art form through different styles and various innovative self-portraits.

Now, you must be more than a little curious about Van Leo’s photography, and if that’s the case, all you need to do is scroll down because we’ve picked quite the selection for you!