WE HEAR THEIR
VOICES THROUGH
THEIR EYES.

The people in this exhibition come from Afghanistan, Syria, Rwanda, Pakistan, Palestine, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Egypt, India, and Tibet. They are Tibetan monks, child soldiers, refugees, and victims of war. They live lives of great struggle. Their lives of hardship gives intensity to their eyes and that intensity gives strength to their voices.

The most transcendent moments have come when I least expected them – from sharing in the joys and frustrations of ordinary people’s everyday lives.  These photographs were born out of those everyday moments. Humble places can produce monumental humanity.

Lives born of hardship, photographs born of journey, human connection born out of respect for our common dignity and an open mind about “the other.”

Don’t feel bad for these people. They don’t want our pity. My motivation in bringing them together for you to meet is not so we can say, “Oh, look at those poor people, I want to give them a hug.” Hopefully we will take strength from their strength, feel more thankful in our own lives, and, in return, for that strength and that gratitude, go find ways to give people hope, not by just giving money but by giving something of ourselves.

After COVID, tribalism, racism, populism, extremism, lying politicians, and “us vs them” we need to find our way back to each other and to ourselves. We have a very long road to travel – perhaps the people in this exhibition can be our guides.

About Bobby Sager

In war-torn countries around the world philanthropist and photographer Bobby Sager has discovered the transcendent power of hope through people’s eyes. Despite unthinkable violence and destruction his portraits reveal joy, innocence, and strength.

His photography has given rise to several publications. Books include: The Power of the Invisible Sun, (Chronicle 2009), Beyond the Robe (Powerhouse Books, 2013), Untouched Octaves (2017), a collaboration with Pakistani poet Amin Hashwani, Invisible Sun (Rizzoli 2019), and More (Rizzoli, Spring 2023).

Bobby has spent much of the last twenty years living in traumatized communities around the world while doing the work of his family foundation. Working as an American in Afghanistan, a white person in Rwanda, and a Jew in Palestine. He met the people in this exhibit during those travels.

Bobby’s intimacy with his subjects summons a deeper sense of our shared humanity, and increases our awareness, inviting us to reflect on our choices and how we might take action to positively impact our lives and the lives of others.

“I hope that this exhibition helps to stimulate an internal conversation about gratitude for the smallest things, kindness for one another, and a moment of reflection about whether each of us can make more of a difference in the world. We hear their voices through their eyes. Maybe their voices help us to hear our own.” – Bobby Sager

Exhibition at our main Hub Arena Berlin.
Eichenstraße 4, 12435 Berlin
02. – 04. September