Ryan McGinley was born in 1977 in Ramsey, New Jersey. He is an American photographer who began making photographs in 1998.
In 2003, at the age of 25, Ryan McGinley was one of the youngest artist to have a solo show at the Whitney Museum of American Art. He was also named Photographer of the Year in 2003 by American Photo Magazine. Since 2004, Ryan McGinley's style evolved from documenting his friends in real-life situations towards creating settings where the situations he envisions can be documented. In 2007 McGinley was awarded the Young Photographer Infinity Award by the International Center of Photography. McGinley lives and works in New York City.
