Matthieu Paley
Agency
National Geographic Creative
Izmir, Turkey
French-born photographer Matthieu Paley explores themes of remoteness and isolation. His career has taken him on assignments around the world. He has lived in Pakistan and Hong Kong, until finally settling in Turkey. An explorer by nature, he relishes in documenting the world’s most remote corners and mountainous regions.
He began documenting the journey of Afghanistan’s Kyrgyz yak caravans in 2000 and was one of the first Westerners to reach the Afghan Pamir Mountains in winter 2008. Paley’s coverage of these nomadic people ultimately culminated in an award-
winning book, Pamir: Forgotten on the Roof of the World.
His work has been exhibited globally and was projected at Visa pour L’Image in Perpignan, France. The Banff Mountain Festival, Photo District News, Festival de la Mer, and the Society of Publishers in Asia have honored his photojournalism and multimedia work. Paley holds a degree in international business from the University of Le Havre in France and is an alumnus of Parsons: the New School for Design in New York, where he studied photography.