Documentary photographer Steven Rubin named Penn State distinguished professor

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Steven Rubin, professor of artwork within the College of Arts and Architecture’s School of Visual Arts, has been named distinguished professor in recognition of excellent educational contribution to Penn State. A documentary photographer whose work highlights important and up to date points together with well being disparities, rural poverty, refugee migration and immigrant detention, he’s one in every of 14 Penn State college members to obtain the respect in 2026.

Rubin joined the Penn State college in 2008 after spending greater than 20 years as a contract photojournalist within the United States and overseas, together with Iraq, Rwanda, Kosovo and Pakistan, amongst different international locations. His latest initiatives examine the rise of wind power within the Midwest, the precarious situations of Burmese Chin refugees in India, and the social and environmental impacts of Marcellus Shale fuel improvement in Pennsylvania, culminating within the guide “Shale Play — Poems and Photographs from the Fracking Fields” with documentary poet Julia Spicher Kasdorf. He is at present documenting the troubling rise of diabetes in choose components of West Africa and Latin America. Closer to house, he’s additionally collaborating with Kasdorf on a brand new guide, documenting the various challenges of native farming and farm life inside a 30-mile radius of his house in State College.

“As a documentary photographer who has worked around the globe, Professor Rubin brings an unmatched perspective to the classroom, the college and the University,” stated B. Stephen Carpenter II, Michael J. and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Dean within the College of Arts and Architecture. “He is recognized internationally for his creative practice and has served the University in many roles, working with both students and faculty members. I find the long-term, globally recognized impact of his creative and scholarly work, particularly from a human rights perspective, to be compelling evidence of raising standards within and beyond the University. He certainly exemplifies the characteristics of a ‘distinguished professor.’”

In addition to his guide, Rubin’s images have been revealed in “The New York Times Magazine,” “National Geographic,” “Time,” “Newsweek” and “The Village Voice,” and internationally in “Stern,” “GEO,” “Focus,” “L’Express” and “The London Independent Magazine.”

His work has been exhibited throughout the United States and featured on the Refugee Studies Centre in Oxford and on the worldwide competition “Visa pour L’Image,” in Perpignan, France. A 2012-13 Fulbright-Nehru Scholar in northeast India, he’s additionally the recipient of the Leica Medal of Excellence, a New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) Fellowship, a Nieman Fellowship at Harvard and an Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship. As a Community Fellow with the Open Society Institute (Baltimore), he co-directed the revolutionary program “Healing Images,” offering digital cameras, instruction and remedy to survivors of torture. He was additionally a Media Fellow with the Open Society Institute (New York), which supported his well timed photographic investigation of the federal authorities’s detention and therapy of immigrants — work that has been extensively circulated by Amnesty International, Human Rights First and the American Bar Association.

In his letter of help, Keith Shapiro, affiliate professor of artwork and member of the pictures college, praised Rubin for his capability to attach his skilled documentary follow with advantageous artwork inquiry.

“In courses such as ‘PHOTO 405: Creative Projects in Photography,’ he guides students to develop conceptually grounded projects that reflect both technical discipline and visual awareness,” wrote Shapiro. “His teaching emphasizes how formal choices serve meaning, and how a photographer’s work can be both expressive and socially engaged. Students regard him as clear, fair and attentive, and they respect the consistency and integrity he brings to his teaching.”

Eduardo Navas, interim director of the School of Visual Arts, echoed Shapiro’s feedback, noting Rubin’s lessons are usually not solely hands-on, however designed to develop civic engagement. Recent class initiatives have had college students working with Penn State Sustainability and the Sustainable Communities Collaborative in partnership with the Office of Physical Plant, documenting the challenges Penn State faces in its dedication to recycling, sustainability and lowering meals waste.

“Professor Rubin’s teaching approach goes beyond the basic expectation of technical acquisition, critical and historical knowledge,” wrote Navas in his letter of help for Rubin’s nomination. “He engages students in real-life situations so that they learn the life-changing power of photography as a storytelling medium that crosses over to art in terms of exhibits and journalistic publications.”

In 2021, Rubin gained the College of Arts and Architecture’s Barbara O. Korner Award for Faculty Outstanding Service. He has curated exhibitions for the School of Visual Arts throughout the University.

A graduate of Reed College in Portland, Oregon, Rubin earned his grasp of advantageous arts in visible arts on the University of California, San Diego.