Marco Grob, born in Olten, Switzerland, is an Emmy Award-winning portrait photographer based in New York. After twenty years of working as a still-life photographer, he shifted his career in 2003 towards portrait and people photography. His portfolio spans Hollywood actors, celebrated musicians, global political leaders, and major commercial campaigns. Grob’s work has been published in leading international magazines and exhibited worldwide. His signature project, Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience, has been added to the permanent collections of both the Smithsonian and the National 9/11 Memorial Museum.
After training in Los Angeles as a photographer’s assistant, Marco Grob returned to Switzerland to establish his own studio. For two decades, he specialised in still life photography, mastering light and technical craft. In 2003, he embraced portraiture, relocating first to Europe’s creative hubs and later to New York in 2008, where his career flourished.
Grob’s portraits feature acclaimed actors such as Leonardo DiCaprio, George Clooney, Robert Downey Jr., Uma Thurman and Julianne Moore, alongside musicians Elton John, Lady Gaga, Sting and Pink. He has photographed leaders including Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Joe Biden and numerous other heads of state. His cinematic and corporate clients include Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Marvel, Netflix, NBC Universal, Rolex, IWC, TAG Heuer, and Louis Vuitton.
Editorially, his photographs have appeared in TIME, Vanity Fair, Vogue, GQ, Esquire, and The New York Times Magazine. Among his career highlights is the commission from TIME for Beyond 9/11: Portraits of Resilience in 2011. The project combined portraits and video testimonies of survivors, first responders and world leaders, earning widespread acclaim, an Emmy Award, and placement in major museum collections.
Marco Grob’s portraits are distinguished by clarity, depth, and an ability to reveal both power and vulnerability in his subjects. His assignments have contributed to some of the most iconic cultural imagery of the 21st century, including poster campaigns for Marvel’s The Avengers and Star Wars: Episode IX. His photograph of Steve Jobs at Apple headquarters in 2010 became one of the definitive visual records of the visionary leader.
Recognition for his work includes the prestigious Hasselblad Master Award, ADC Gold, the Swiss ADC, South African Loerie Awards, Cannes Lions, Picture of the Year International (POYi), and the Kunstpreis des Kantons Solothurn in 2011. His Emmy Award for Beyond 9/11 cemented his reputation as a portraitist of historic moments.
Since 2010, Grob has worked closely with the United Nations Mine Action Service to document the global devastation caused by landmines and unexploded ordnance. Through assignments in affected regions, including South Sudan, his photographs raise awareness of the human cost of war and advocate for education and mine removal. Alongside his commercial and editorial success, Grob is deeply committed to using photography as a tool for humanitarian engagement and the preservation of memory.
Grob’s work has been exhibited internationally, including at Milk Gallery in New York, the Kunstmuseum Bern and the National Museum of Denmark. His images are held in the permanent collections of the Smithsonian Institution and the National 9/11 Memorial Museum. He continues to lecture at institutions such as the Eddie Adams Workshop and the International Center of Photography, sharing his experience with the next generation of photographers. Marco Grob remains active globally, blending commercial commissions with socially engaged visual storytelling.
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