Robert Vavra

In 1988, Vavra established a camp in Ololasurai, Kenya and began what would become a six-year stay with the tribal Maasai people, which led to the publication of A Tent With a View in 1991. He has paid for the education of several Maasai children and financed the building of a school in Mexico, where, since its construction, more than 5000 boys and girls have learned to read and write.

He became immersed in the lore and life of this beast which culminated in the publishing of his book, Bulls of Iberia, in 1972. He was a personal friend of legendary matador de toros Juan Belmonte, riding with him on horseback to check his herds of black bulls, and he shared the dreams, fears, adventures and valor of other toreros, such as the American John Fulton.

Inspired by bulls and bullfighting in Mexico, Vavra moved to Spain in 1958 with a one-way ticket to Madrid on an old Italian ship The Valcania. With no formal training in animals, he spent six years studying the beasts. “I couldn’t obtain the sort of photographs I wanted for the study, so I became a photographer out of necessity,” Vavra was quoted as saying. “I’ve never been interested in the camera ... I don’t really consider myself a photographer. I’m an artist and a storyteller.”

Robert Vavra (born March 9, 1935 in Glendale, California) is an American photographer and author based in El Cajon, California, California and in Spain in the summer.