Iconic photo of Afghan girl sets record-setting price at Polish auction
The cult photo 'Afghan Girl,' taken by Steve McCurry, has sold for over PLN 283,000 (EUR 62,000). As such, it becomes the most expensive photograph sold at auction in Poland, according to DESA Unicum, a Polish auction house.
The portrait of a green-eyed Afghan girl, hailed as the Mona Lisa of the 21st century, is on view at the "Collector's Photography" exhibition at DESA Unicum.
Steve McCurry’s photograph actually became an icon on the day of its publication. It was taken in 1984, when the American photojournalist, commissioned by 'National Geographic' magazine, arrived at a refugee camp on the Afghan-Pakistani border.
The portrait of the green-eyed girl has become one of the most recognisable covers in the world. This image was not just a breakthrough in contemporary documentary photography, but thanks to it, the whole world became interested, once again, in the political and economic situation in Afghanistan.
