I had my first museum showing of my slide show in Rotterdam, in 1983. I love Rotterdam. I love harbour cities in general.

I used to think that I could never lose anyone if I photographed them enough. In fact, my pictures show me how much I’ve lost.

My desire is to preserve the sense of people’s lives, to endow them with the strength and beauty I see in them. I want the people in my pictures to stare back.

For me it is not a detachment to take a picture. It's a way of touching somebody - it's a caress… I think that you can actually give people access to their own soul.

I always thought if I photographed anyone or anything enough, I would never lose the person, I would never lose the memory, I would never lose the place. But the pictures show me how much I've lost.

Yes, photography saved my life. Every time I go through something scary, traumatic, I survive by taking pictures.

I knew from a very early age, that what I saw on tv had nothing to do with real life. So I wanted to make a record of real life. That included having a camera with me at all times.

I just get inspired to take a picture by the beauty and vulnerability of my friends.

My work is mostly about memory. It is very important to me that everybody that I have been close to in my life I make photographs of them.

I think the wrong things are kept private

My work shows the beauty in so many different kinds of people because I never photograph anyone who I don't think is beautiful. I never take an intentionally mean picture.

To hate someone just because he doesn't presume like you is big blunder.

The mistake is to assume that the way it feels at the moment is the way it will feel forever.

When you put down the good things you ought to have done and leave out the bad things you did do - well that's memoirs.

If you ask me what's harder, being famous or flying to space, I'd say fame is much harder.

Every director works differently.

A man has a right to want to live.

A good dancer is an educated one, so dont abandon school.

In Philadelphia, you are welcome, and that's The City of Brotherly Love. I think that makes us culturally thick and sound, so you can experience all kinds of cultural authenticity.

Anyone who has ever had the feeling of being higher than a kite after giving a public speech is well aware of the effects of attention.

Harvard was an extraordinary window on the world.