Biography

William Alden Manning (b. 1989) is a contemporary American photographer based in New York. Informed by the straight photography aesthetic, he pursues a body of work concentrated on four projects. Three are rooted in place: In Japan, made across multiple visits to the country since 2017; On Going Home, made on returns to Virginia and other places Manning and his family have called home; and A Modern Empire, centered on New York. Hikiyori, which translates loosely from Japanese as “farther/closer” or “wide shot/close-up,” encompasses abstract photographs.

Manning was born in Virginia and spent several years of his childhood in Surrey, outside London. He earned a B.A. from Johns Hopkins University, where he double-majored in Writing Seminars, with a concentration in poetry, and German, with an emphasis on philosophical literature. He has lived and worked in New York since 2012. Through 2018, Manning maintained an active commercial practice, contributing to international publications such as Popeye, Subsequence, and Models.com, and creating commissioned work for clients including Netflix, United Arrows, and the United Nations Creative Community Outreach Initiative.

Since 2018, he has been engaged exclusively in personal work.