Norman McGrath - bio

London-born photographer Norman McGrath was educated in Ireland where he grew up. He earned a degree in engineering at Trinity College Dublin. His father was the Australian born architect, author/painter, Raymond McGrath. After a year working as a structural engineer in Dublin, McGrath moved to New York in 1956. Over the next seven years he gradually made the transition into the field of architectural photography. His long career includes a wide variety of work for many well-known architects and designers.

Every major architectural publication has featured his images and his book Photographing Buildings Inside and Out, sold over 47,000 copies, and has been very influential. A new book is on the way, Architectural Photography: Professional Techniques for Shooting Interior and Exterior Spaces. Recent assignments include: The Bronx Museum of the Arts (Arquitectonica), The New York Times (Renzo Piano), The IAC Building (Frank Gehry), the Miami Federal Courthouse (Arquitectonica) and the lobby of the Hearst Tower (Norman Foster). McGrath co- authored with Eric Nash, Manhattan Skyscrapers now approaching its third edition. He is also a regular contributor to View Camera magazine.

For many years Norman has been conducting architectural photography workshops for the Maine Media Workshops in Rockport, Maine, and until recently for the Palm Beach Photo Workshops in Delray Beach, Florida, in addition to location workshops in Havana, Cuba and Chicago etc. In 1985 The American Institute of Architects selected McGrath for its Institute Honor and the New York Chapter A.I.A. awarded him a special citation in 1999. 2002 saw the first major solo exhibit of his work in the New York metropolitan area. In 2000 Canon selected Norman McGrath as an Explorer of Light, the only architectural photographer so honored. He was reappointed in 2008. He continues to work actively in both film and digital.