Tennessee Williams in Jackson Square, New Orleans 1977
©Christopher R. Harris

Professor Chris Harris received his BFA in photography from Rochester Institute of Technology in 1969, and his MA in Journalism from the University of Alabama in 1990.                     

 Between undergraduate and graduate years Mr. Harris worked as a freelance photojournalist for major news publications worldwide, and was a founding member of Gamma/Liaison photo agency. He has completed hundreds of assignments for TIME, Newsweek and The New York Times as a photojournalist, and worked as a reporter on investigative teams for TIME, and The New York Times.

Professor Harris has had his work published in many books, anthologies and journals. He and his work have been profiled in CA (Communications Arts), Portfolio, Time-Life Series on Photography, American Photographer, Camera 35, and Popular Photography Annual, as well as national and regional art director publications.

Chris Harris has photographs in the permanent collections of The Historic New Orleans Collection, The New Orleans Museum of Art, as well as corporations and individuals.

Artist Statement
All photographers have their heroes. Mine were nameless until I studied what fine photojournalism was about. For years I was mesmerized by those countless hundreds, or thousands, of images that we see as news content: who shot them, and how do you get that job and its responsibility of being the “eyes” for those not there? Then I learned of Cartier-Bresson, Elliott Erwit, Brassai, Weegee and the others whose work enticed me to get into the profession.

I started shooting at an early age, and was published by the time I was fifteen.  When in college, during the mid60s, I shot on assignment for Life. From there I launched myself into a career as a freelance photojournalist for publications such as TIME, Life, Newsweek and the New York Times. In 1974 GAMMA/Liaison became my agency of choice after having been associated with Black Star and Camera 5.

What I do, and have done since 1969, is watch and document the world. I bring to each situation a desire to record an occurrence, not to manipulate it later, to add or to subtract, but rather to sum-up what I have seen and share it with others. I prefer black and white photography, but enjoy what color can add to information.

 Whether with important names such as Tennessee Williams, Walker Percy, Jimmie Carter, Alice Walker or the common folk that make-up our society, I am always honored to have been with the subjects of my photographs.