Joseph Rodríguez is a documentary photographer born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He studied photography at the School of Visual Arts and in the Photojournalism and Documentary Photography Program at the International Center of Photography.
His work has been published by National Geographic, The New York Times Magazine, Mother Jones, Newsweek, New York Magazine, Esquire, Stern, BBC News, and New America Media. He has received awards and grants from the New York Foundation for the Arts, USC Annenberg Institute for Justice and Journalism, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Fund for Investigative Journalism, and others. He has authored eight books of photography, including East Side Stories: Gang Life in East Los Angeles, Juvenile, and Taxi: Journey Through My Windows 1977–1987, all published by powerHouse Books.
Joseph is represented by Galerie Bene Taschen, Cologne, Germany. His work has been exhibited at Aperture Gallery; Reva and David Logan Gallery for Documentary Photography at the Graduate School of Journalism, Berkeley, CA; and the Bronx Documentary Center.
He has been a visiting artist at many universities in the Americas and Europe and taught at New York University Tisch School of the Arts and The International Center of Photography.
Following the journey of migrant workers from their homeland in Michoacán, Mexico, across the US-Mexico border, and throughout America, in search of work and a better life for their families.
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Another Perspective is a cross generational photo collaboration between three documentary photographers who all have direct experince with the criminal justice system.
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TAXI: Journey Through My Windows 1977–1987 is a portrait of the gritty chaos and community of New York in the 1970s. The book is composed of photographs captured from the driver’s seat of documentary photographer (and cab driver) Joseph Rodriguez’s taxi—including scenes of night workers getting off their shifts, children jumping through the spray of open fire hydrants in the summer, and S&M partiers leaving clubs, zipped in leather, in the early hours of the morning.
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Shot in the mid-to-late 80s, Joseph Rodríguez’s photographs bring us into the core of Spanish Harlem, capturing the spirit of a people that survive despite the ravages of poverty, and more recently, the threat of gentrification and displacement.
East Side Stories puts a human face to gang members in Los Angeles while in their homes and with their families.
Join the documentary photographers of Another Perspective. for a container-side chat about their work, their exhibition, and their cross-generational experiences with the criminal justice system.
Learn MoreJoin us for an evening of music, community, and beautiful visual storytelling as we celebrate how photography captures and reflects our histories.
Learn MoreGrab your morning coffee and come join legendary photographer Joseph Rodriguez as he shares his memories and stories behind the images in his exhibition and book “Taxi: Journey Through My Windows 1977-1987,” a collection of snapshots that are on display along the fence of First Street Green Cultural Park on Houston Street.
Learn MoreCo-operative businesses are returning workers’ power. These photographers have shown both the beauty and the effort of when Americans get to be their own bosses.
Learn MorePhotoville’s 10 Under 10 featuring presentations from The New York Times, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Abrons Arts Center, Magnum Foundation, Pulitzer Center, Indigenous Photo, United Nations Women, Joseph Rodriguez, The Darkroom Masters, and National Geographic featuring live music from Carnegie Hall’s Lullaby Project.
Learn MoreJoe Rodriguez and David Gonzalez will be discussing his groundbreaking National Geographic cover on Spanish Harlem in the 1980s, looking back on a vital New York City community that is undergoing increasing gentrification.
Learn MoreJoin Joseph Rodríguez, Ruben Martinez, Dr. Jesse De La Cruz, and Rubén Martínez for a powerful educational discussion on gang violence, juvenile justice and re-entry into Los Angeles communities.
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