Since graduating with a BA (Hons) Photography from The Northern School of Art, Peter Caton has built an internationally recognised career as a documentary photographer, using photography to explore humanitarian issues and the impact of climate change on communities around the world.
Peter’s work has taken him across Asia, Africa and South America, where he has spent more than two decades documenting some of the world’s most pressing humanitarian and environmental issues. His photography has been commissioned by international organisations including Greenpeace, Save the Children, WWF, UNHCR, Oxfam and the Red Cross, and published by The Sunday Times Magazine, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Marie Claire, Esquire and Le Figaro.
A defining focus of Peter’s career has been documenting the human impact of climate change. His work in the Sundarbans region of India, where communities are increasingly threatened by rising sea levels and extreme weather, became a significant turning point in his practice. His Sinking Sundarbans project, created in partnership with Greenpeace, was exhibited at the Oxo Gallery in London before travelling internationally.
Peter has subsequently documented environmental and humanitarian issues across the globe. His work in Brazil’s Cerrado examined the impact of agribusiness and monoculture on one of the world’s most biodiverse savannahs, while Food for Life explored organic farming through a global photographic essay. His work has also taken him to drought-affected communities in East Africa and to Mozambique following Cyclone Idai.
His long-running project Unyielding Floods documents communities in South Sudan living through years of devastating flooding. Commissioned by Action Against Hunger, Peter’s photographs explore not only the destruction caused by the climate crisis, but also the resilience and adaptation of people living with its consequences. The project has been exhibited internationally and featured in publications around the world.
Unyielding Floods has also received significant international recognition, including first place in the Environmental category at the 2021 International Photography Awards. The project has received multiple other photography awards, reflecting the strength of Peter’s documentary approach and the international impact of his work.
Peter’s photography has been exhibited internationally throughout his career, including exhibitions in London, Brazil and Milan. His work combines powerful documentary storytelling with a strong focus on the people at the centre of the stories he photographs, using photography to bring attention to communities and issues that might otherwise remain unseen.
His career demonstrates the potential of photography as a tool for documentary storytelling, social commentary and international journalism. From graduating with a Photography degree in the North East to spending decades working around the world, Peter has developed a distinctive practice focused on some of the most significant humanitarian and environmental challenges of our time.
Links: www.petercaton.co.uk
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petercatonpix/