Robert Yager is a British born, award-winning photographer based in Los Angeles. Having studied photography in the US, Yager began documenting Los Angeles street gangs in 1992. Since then, Yager has been a contributing photographer to a host of magazines.
Biography
Robert Yager was born and grew up in London, England. He is a Los Angeles-based photographer. With an interest in anthropology. Particularly street culture and counter-culture and having studied Latin American Studies in the UK and Mexico, as well as photography in the US, Yager decided to delve into the world of Latino street gangs in Los Angeles. It was 1992 and he has been documenting the lives of gang members ever since.
Since the early 1990s Yager has been an editorial photographer, doing covers and features, portraits and reportage, for a host of magazines. Among them: The New York Times Magazine, The Observer (UK), The Independent, The Telegraph, The Guardian Weekend, The Sunday Times, Fortune, Fader, Esquire, Rolling Stone, Newsweek and TIME.
Among the accolades he has received, Yager was awarded a fellowship from the Aaron Siskind Foundation at the School of Visual Arts in New York and has twice been a finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Fund Award.
Yager published a historic monograph of his Playboys Gang photography with 550BC Publishers, titled "Playboys". The first edition in 2022, and the second in 2023. In 2007 he created a book with great Circle Books, titled 'a.k.a. BooBoo', which covers a 14-year time span in the life of Cindy Martinez, a female gang member. An exhibition of this work led to becoming David Lee Roth's personal photographer, documenting his return to touring the USA & Canada in Van Halen, during 2007, 2008, and again in 2012.
Awards and achievements 2023 – Tokyo International Foto Awards: 2nd Place in Book/Gold in Documentary Book 2023 – Lucie Awards Book Prize: Finalist. 2023 – International Photography Awards: 2nd Place Book/Monograph 2023 – Px3 Prix de la Photographe Paris: Gold – Book/Monograph 2019 – Tokyo International Foto Awards Advertising winner 2019 – International Photography Awards Advertising/Fashion 2019 – PDN Photo Annual 2019 Advertising/Corporate Work winner 2012 – Finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography 2008 – PDN Music Photography Award: 2nd place – David Lee Roth & Eddie Van Halen 2008 – International Photography Award: 3rd place- People/Lifestyle – David Lee Roth 2005 – International Photography Awards: 1st place – Editorial/Photo Essay – Playboys Gang Life 2004 – AOP Zeitgeist Award for editorial photography 1998 – 'Award of Excellence' Communication Arts 1996 – ‘Individual Photographer’s Fellowship’, Aaron Siskind Foundation, School of Visual Arts, NY. 1994/95 – 'Southern California Journalism Award', Los Angeles Press Club -'Best Photo Essay' in a weekly newspaper. 1994 – Finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Grant in Humanistic Photography
Exhibitions 2024: “Gang Life in Los Angeles” House of Lucie, Athens, Greece. September-October 2024. Solo show 2024: “Projecting LA” Los Angeles April 27, 2024 2024: “Staring Into The Sun” – Webber Gallery, Los Angeles – December 2023-February 2024 2023: “Best of Show” - International Photography Awards – October 2023-December 2023 2023: “2 Live And Die In LA” February 2023 2020: "Foremost” Photography World’s Emerging Stars Exhibition – Hotel Collective, Okinawa, Japan, 16-30 January 2020. 2019-20: “Best of Show” International Photography Awards 2019: “On The Block – Images From The Street” – House of Lucie, Los Angeles October-November 2019. 2019: “We Rise” – Los Angeles. 18-27 May 2019. 2018-19: “Ink” – Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, California 25 August 2018 – 3 February 2019 2018: “We Rise” – Los Angeles. 18-28 May, 2018. 2018: “How To Read El Pato Pascual” – MAK Center, West Hollywood. September 2017- January 2018. 2014: “Postcards From The Edge” – Groundworks, Downtown Los Angeles. November 2013-January 2014. 2012: "Mariposa Nocturnal" – Smoking Mirrors, Pomona, California. August–September 2011: "Land of the Lost Angels" – Canal Club, Venice, California. April 2011: "Valley of the Dolls" – L.A. Design Center, Los Angeles, California. February 2010: "Tonanzin" – Smoking Mirrors, Pomona, California. December 2010: "Callajeros" – Smoking Mirrors, Pomona, California. February 2009: "Document" – Paul Bright Gallery, Toronto, Canada. May 2007: "a.k.a BooBoo" – A&I Photo Lab, Los Angeles, California. June–August Solo Show 2006: "Gang Life" – Jennie Ricketts Gallery, Brighton, England. September Solo Show 2006: "Vice Show" – Silverstein Gallery, New York City, New York. July 2005: Create:Fixate "Deluxe" – HD Buttercup, Los Angeles, California. May 2005: "Park Your Art" (curated by Ethan Cohen) – Art LA, Santa Monica, California, January 2004: Create:Fixate "The Photography Show" – Spring Arts Tower, Los Angeles, California, July 1999: "Remembrance: The Eternal Present" - Houston Center for Photography, Houston, Texas. March–May 1997: Visa Pour L’Image festival of photojournalism – Perpignan, France. September 1997: "The Cross in a Contemporary World" – Sag Harbor Picture Gallery, Sag Harbor, New York. March–May 1996–1997: "Wedding Days: Images of Matrimony in Photography" – Japan. May–March 1995: "P.L.A.N. (Photography in Los Angeles Now)" – Unity Arts Center and Spring Street Galleries, Los Angeles, California. July–September 1995: "Pulp Fact" – The Photographers’ Gallery, London, England. May–June 1995: "Artists For Chiapas" – Julie Rico Gallery, Santa Monica, California. May 1994: "Current Works" – Leedy Voulkos Art Center Gallery, Kansas City, Kansas. September–October 1993: "Wings of Change" - The Directors’ Guild of America, Los Angeles, California. November–December
References
Ex-L.A. Gang Member Trades Streets For Family Life(Photos By Robert Yager) By Del Barco, Mandalit (6 September 2011) NPR Capturing LA Gang Culture (October 2010) Digital Camera Magazine (Pages 30–33) Le gangs di Robert Yager By Grassi, Dimitri (9 November 2009) Ziguline Robert Yager By McEvers, Kelly (2 January 2003) The Alternative Pick La Vida Loca By Dean Brierly (December 1994) Camera & Darkroom (22–33)
External links
"Robert Yager Photography" (Official Website) "Robert Yager Photography" (Facebook)