BOSTON, July 14: Canadian photographer Yousuf Karsh, whose pictures of British politician Winston Churchill, scientist Albert Einstein and author Ernest Hemingway earned his widespread recognition around the world, died here Saturday at 93, according to a local hospital official.

Karsh died at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital at 12:15 pm, hospital spokeswoman Jacqui Fowler said.

Karsh was born to Armenian parents in Turkey in 1908, but the family fled the country in the wake of World War I-era Armenian massacres, according to his biography. His uncle, photographer George Nakash, brought him to Canada in 1924.

After an apprenticeship in Boston, Karsh settled in Ottawa in 1932, where he began his professional career.

“Within every man and woman a secret is hidden, and as a photographer it is my task to reveal it if I can,” he said once about his work.

In December 1941, he made a portrait of a defiant Churchill, which later became a symbol of Britain’s courage and fighting spirit during World War II and brought Karsh international recognition. The photograph was taken on short notice, minutes after Churchill delivered a rousing address at the House of Commons.

Karsh asked the British leader to take his trademark cigar out of his mouth and, when he ignored the request, stepped forward and snatched it from Churchill’s mouth.

The picture captured an irate Churchill glowering at the photographer. But the rough handling notwithstanding, the British leader allowed Karsh to take another shot.—AFP