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    24 Striking Pictures Of Afghanistan By Photojournalist Steve McCurry

    A London exhibition is set to celebrate Steve McCurry's relationship with Afghanistan's people, culture and landscape.

    1. ‘Woman in canary burqa’, 2002.

    Steve McCurry, born in Philadelphia, 1950, is one of the most recognised photographers of our time.

    2. ‘Salat at Blue Mosque’, 1992.

    3. ‘Mujahideen stand atop a mountain in the Hindu Kush’, 1984.

    In 1978 Steve McCurry travelled to Pakistan as a young freelance photojournalist looking for stories.

    4. ‘Children work in opium field in Badakhshan’, 1992.

    It was here and then that he met the first of many Afghan refugees, who encouraged Steve to travel with them to their country to help tell the story of a conflict between US backed Mujahideen rebels and the Soviet backet Afghan Government.

    5. ‘Teeth makter in Kandahar’, 1998.

    The conflict that was to develop into a bloody 9 year long war that would take the lives of over 1 million Afghans.

    6. ‘Father and daughter at home in Nuristan’, 1992.

    7. ‘Hazara man pulls cart past burning house’, 1985.

    8. ‘Afghan women at shoe store’, 1992.

    This exhibition of 40 pictures, spanning the past 30 years taken both before and after the arrival of US troops in 2002, comes from the archive of McCurry's work, documenting the rich history of a troubled, yet beautiful country.

    9. ‘Father and son in Helmand Province’, 1980.

    10. ‘Shiite muslims during Ashura’, 2002.

    11. ‘Horse and two towers at Band-E-Ammir’, 2002.

    12. ‘Man with cloudy beard’, 1992.

    13. ‘Young men train for war’, 1984.

    Afghanistan has been a recurring subject in McCurry's work, during his various tenures there he has lived with the Afghan people, both military and civilian, and documented conflict, culture and scenery across the incredibly varied landscape.

    14. ‘Mujahideen fighters watch convoy’, 1979.

    15. 'Kabul cemetery', 1992.

    16. ‘Portrait photographer’, 1992.

    17. ‘Mujahid prays’, 1980.

    18. ‘Men watch as tanks go by’, 1992.

    19. ‘Young Mujahideen on swing’, 1980.

    20. ‘Girl between two women in bazaar’, 2002.

    21. ‘Pigeon feeding near Blue Mosque’, 1991.

    22. ‘Refugee camp in Peshawar’, 1984.

    23. ‘A young boy stands with his firearm’, 1979.

    24. ‘An Afghan refugee in Baluchistan’, 1981.