Still Life
The year is 1972. From a poppy-red podium, Indira Gandhi, then the prime minister of India, addresses a large crowd in Srinagar. She cuts an imposing silhouette against the void separating her from an audience of thousands. A few metres behind her are the reporters. Nestled among them, an American photographer in her forties captures the scene using a 35-millimetre camera.
Marilyn Stafford never set out to become a photographer. Trained in acting as a child, she was destined for a life in front of the camera, not behind it. Through a series of chance encounters, she found herself drawn to the storytelling potential of photography, championing the form’s power as both witness to life and catalyst for change.
Stafford, who was born in Cleveland, Ohio, was 23 years old when
