Family members carry the remains of Tjokorde Isteri Muter up the cremation tower during one of the last Ubud Royal Family cremations, in Ubud, Gianyar regency, Bali, Indonesia, 2004-2008. The cremation pyre symbolizes the macrocosm in which the human microcosm will eventually merge.
Thousands of Megawati supporters give the "bullet" symbol of support to Megawati Sukarnoputri during her last PDI rally in central Jakarta before the elections. June 1, 1999 Photo by: John Stanmeyer / VII
Jakarta, Indonesia. Chained drug addicts fighting at the Masjid Nurul Alam. Frustrated by the growing number of drug addicts and the rise of HIV/AIDS, the imam of this mosque resorts to chaining up drug addicts for up to six weeks in how they kick the needle.
A man in fear as he's about to be operated on without anesthesia at the hospital in Kabul City, Afghanistan. Just days after the Taliban fled the capitol, the hospital has no medications after years of sanctions and harsh Taliban rule.
Jakarta, Indonesia. Drug addicts chained to a wall at a mosque by the mullah as a last ditch effort to help heroin addicts from returning to the needle.
A family heading home with all their possessions on mules a day after the Taliban fell near Taliqan, Afghanistan. During the years of Taliban rule in northern Afghanistan most people lived in fear and fled their homes.
Sudanese refugee after walking for days to a feeding center in Atepi, South Sudan. She is a member of the Dinka tribe. John Stanmeyer
Labor Accidents - Playing table tennis to pass the time, these men are all former employees of toy and computer factories in southern China and had limbs lost by machines while on the job. All were fired once the accidents occurred and now live at the Zhou Litai low office in Loong Gang County, Shenzhen, China, where over 40 amputees await trials to seek compensation for their physical losses such as arms and legs. Labor laws are often never enforced in China where foreign companies seek cheap labor in order to make their goods less expensive before shipping them to markets in the West.
With over 2,500 police and security officials keeping tight watch on the crowd, thousands of people listen to or dance to the music of Hei Bao (Black Panther) at the 2000 Modern Music Concert held in the Olympic Stadium, Beijing, China. It is the first large rock n' roll concert held in Beijing since 1990.
PDI supporters in Plaza Indonesia react after being told their candidate, Megawati Sukarnoputri, won the Indonesian Elections. Moments later joy turned to anger because it was a lie told to them by PDI leaders in hope of keeping the thousands of supporters from rioting. Jakarta, Indonesia. December 20, 1999 Photo by: John Stanmeyer / VII
Manila, Philippines. Truck drivers at a karaoke brothel.
An ethnic African Pakistani reflected in the decorative mirrors of the Dargah temple in Lea Market of Karachi, Pakistan. The city of Karachi is host to thousands of Africans who were first brought over as slaves by the British during colonial rule.
Women in a traditional burka heading to her home within the ruined city sections of Gada-e-Mawaind, Kabul. The area, like much of Kabul,was totally destroyed by decades of war. Thousands of Kabul residents live within these shattered remains in the Afghan capital.
Children tilt bricks up on their side after two days of drying at the GT Brick factory in Karkhla, Pakistan, October 2001. The children, aged 4-6, perform this labor for their father because they are lightweight and do not deform the bricks which are still somewhat soft.
Bong Bong's carrying up baskets of dirt from a barge to an awaiting truck after the dirt was sucked up from the bottom of the Yangzi River. The laborers, all immigrants from outside Chong Qing are known as ÒBong Bongs.Ó They toil all day long ÑÊand throughout the night ÑÊdoing the hard work of carrying every type of item. The dirt from the bottom of the Yangzi has been used to build the buildings and roads of Chong Qing. Their average pay ranges from $1-$3 dollars for a full days work.
Locked behind bars, children as young as seven, languish at the Edhi Village for the mentally ill located outside Karachi, Pakistan. In Pakistan, the government has all but given up on caring for the mentally ill, having to ask private donors to handle the care. More than 1,000 mentally ill patients live jammed together in the privately funded Karachi commune called Edhi Village, run by the prominent social worker Abdus Sattar Edhi. Iron gates lock the inmates in, some of whom, stark naked, slam their heads against the walls of their dark cells. "Our center is becoming a dumping ground for people who consider mentally ill people as the dirt of society," says Ghazanfar Karim, the complex's overburdened supervisor.
An Afghani laborer checks the thick black smoke which billows from the stack as tire rubber burns to heat the bricks until they are hardened at the GT Brick factory in Karkhla, Pakistan, October 2001.
Donning lifejackets thrown to them by the U.S. Coast Guard, 468 Haitians are crammed in the 55-foot Merci Jesus, desperately trying to flee their home. They were intercepted off Haiti’s coast in the Gul of Mexico.
Daily life for over 300 women and men who live like animals Ñ many of them chained to walls Ñ at Panti Bina Laras Cipayung, a government run center for the mentally ill and homeless located in east Jakarta. Mostly naked and given little medication, these men and women live their lives in dungeon like conditions due to lack of government funding. Since the 1997 Asian Economic Crisis hit Indonesia, funding for issues like mental health have deteriorated and due to inflation, funds available in 2003/2004 are less than what was available in 1997. The government funded Cipayung center only has a budget of less than $1 USD per day to provide each patient with food and medicine. The facility was only designed to hold 150 people, but due to the continuing economic problems facing Indonesia, many people on the streets can no longer cope and find themselves not only suffering from poverty, but also mentally, art of the growing problem of mental health in Asia.
Chiang Mai, Thailand. Too young to know what is happening, a boy plays with his mother's coffin before her body is placed inside. She died of AIDS after contracting the disease from her husband who had frequented brothels.
Thousands of Muslims take part in Friday prayers at the Central Mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia. 2000
Election campaign for Indonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputi ' s PDI-P party during a large rally in Singaraja, northern Bali, Indonesia. Holga Camera.
Not all of China's youth are living the good life in the new 'Communist' China. Illegal massage parlor with one of the last remaining blind masseuses still plying his trade next door to the brothel in the Ruli, China, full of young girls from remote regions of China. With AIDS running ramped in Ruli, which boarders northern Burma, hundreds of illegal massage parlors populate this wild border town. Young girls are trafficked in from poorer regions of China or from other parts of Asia to work in the brothels with the store fronts are massage parlors.
Daily life inside the packed 3rd class car on the Amritsar to Kadihar Express, about 2 1/2 hours outside of Delhi heading towards Kadihar. Over 200 people manage to cope even in such over filled railway cars.
A military commander kicks a looter who was stealing a music cassette in Jakarta, Indonesia. As madness descended onto Indonesia, tens of thousands took to the streets of the nation's capital rioting and burning the city calling for then President Suharto to resign. A few days later he left the presidency under pressure of the people. Over 500 people died during the three-day rampage. May 1, 1998 Photo by: John Stanmeyer / VII
College students unite and call for Suharto to step down as president of Indonesia in front of the MPR, parliament building, Jakarta, Indonesia. Days later, Suharto resigned due to mass protests. May 1, 1998 Photo by: John Stanmeyer / VII
Anti-US demonstration in Peshawar, Pakistan, burn an effigy of President Bush during a rally outside a mosque. October 9, 2001 PH: John Stanmeyer-VII
John Stanmeyer
Location
Massachusetts, USA

John Stanmeyer

Contributing Photographer

John Stanmeyer is a National Geographic Explorer, photographer, and artist. An Emmy nominated filmmaker and educator dedicated to environmental, social, and cultural issues that define our times. For more than 15 years, John has worked nearly exclusively with National Geographic magazine, producing over 19 stories, resulting in more than 14 covers. He has also been the photographer on the epic journey across the earth with writer and NatGeo colleague Paul Salopek on the Out of Eden Walk. Between 1998 and 2008, John was a contract photographer for Time magazine. His years with Time resulted in 18 covers. In 2001, Stanmeyer co-founded the prestigious VII Photo Agency with six of the world’s leading photojournalists. Today VII represents more than 29 photographers from around the globe. Stanmeyer is an Emeritus member of VII and is a member of Ripple Effects Images, a collective of artists and storytellers working on women, empowerment, and equality. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including the prestigious Robert Capa Award, POYi Magazine Photographer of the Year, and the World Press Photo of the Year in 2014. John lives with his dogs, Elfriede the Great Dane, and her sister, Eleanor, in the southern Berkshires of western Massachusetts.

Latest updates

“Hocus Focus: How Magicians Made a Fortune on Facebook”

August 9, 2022

Meet Dasha & Maya

March 31, 2022

“War, Through Train Windows” Short Film

March 31, 2022

Out of Eden Walk — A Journey’s Lessons

October 25, 2021

VII Photo Agency Biden-Harris Inauguration Coverage

January 22, 2021

America, Again | Chapter 2: The Environment

January 10, 2020

Stories

Yida, South Sudan

October 26, 2017

Events

Dec
13
2023
Continuing Education Series: Preparing for Grants and Contests with Anush Babajanyan and John Stanmeyer
Discussion
Subscribe to our newsletter
Copyright VII Foundation 2023