Henri Cartier-Bresson in 1953, credit: Ihei Kimura via Wikipedia
Henri Cartier-Bresson was one of the most influential photographers of the 20th century. He is often considered the father of modern photojournalism. His style of photography, based on the idea of the "decisive moment", profoundly marked the world of photography.
Cartier-Bresson began his career painting, but soon turned to photography. In 1931 he bought his first Leica, a compact camera that allowed him to capture spontaneous moments on the streets. He has traveled the world documenting historical events and people's daily lives.
His work is characterized by careful composition, skillful use of light and an ability to capture the fleeting moment. He believed in the purity of the snapshot and never retouched his photographs. Cartier-Bresson was a master of black-and-white photography, and his images are often recognized for their timeless aesthetic.
Biography
Henri Cartier-Bresson, the eldest of a bourgeois family, was born into a privileged environment. He showed an early interest in drawing and photography. At the age of twelve, he joined the Scouts de France and began taking photos with a Brownie Kodak offered by his parents. Despite the expectations of his father, who wanted him to take over the family business, Henri opposed this idea and decided to pursue his passion for painting and art.
The surrealist influence
First, Cartier-Bresson studied painting with Jean Cottenet and André Lhote. He immerses himself in the analysis of the canvases of the masters using the "divine proportion" and familiarizes himself with Matila Ghyka's book on the golden ratio. During his military service, he frequented the surrealists and discovered photography thanks to Gretchen and Peter Powell. In 1930, he left for Africa where he took his first shots with a second-hand Krauss camera. He then bought a Leica and devoted himself entirely to photography. His travels to Italy, Spain, Mexico and Morocco allow him to master composition and capture spontaneous moments steeped in everyday life. Under the surrealist influence, he considers photography as a means of receiving the manifestations of the urban marvelous. He adopts André Breton's notion of "convulsive beauty", where a thing is perceived both in motion and at rest, and explores veiled eroticism through his images. He also enjoys photographing off-camera viewers, creating another form of covert eroticism.
Political commitment
Cartier-Bresson is fully committed to communism and the anti-fascist struggle. He attended the AEAR (Association of Writers and Revolutionary Artists) from 1933 and befriended influential communists such as Robert Capa, Chim, Henri Tracol, Louis Aragon, Léon Moussinac and Georges Sadoul. Under the influence of Soviet political and aesthetic ideas, he became actively involved in Nykino, a cooperative of militant filmmakers in New York, and discovered Soviet cinema. Although he has not officially joined the PCF, his communist convictions are strong and he takes courses in dialectical materialism and participates in communist cell meetings.
In 1937, he married Eli, a Javanese dancer involved in the fight for Indonesian independence. To distance himself from his bourgeois family, he adopted the name of Henri Cartier in all his militant activities, including the signing of leaflets and his photographic and cinematographic productions.
He contributes to the production of films hired as an assistant to Jean Renoir, in particular for the film "La vie est à nous", commissioned by the Communist Party. He also participates in film projects such as "Party of the countryside" and "The Rules of the game". At the same time, he shot the film "Victory of Life in Spain" with the Frontier Film team, highlighting the consequences of the bombings and international health aid.
During the Second World War, Cartier-Bresson was mobilized, taken prisoner, escaped and joined a resistance group in Lyon. He documents the fighting during the Liberation of Paris and captures the horrors of the martyred village of Oradour-sur-Glane. His film "Le Retour" recounts the discovery of the camps by the Allies and the repatriation of prisoners to France.
After the war, due to the dissolution of the French Communist Party and the banning of the Communist press, Cartier-Bresson concealed his political involvement. This concealment of his political activism led to misinterpretations of his work for many years. He continued to vote communist, however, until the Hungarian uprising was crushed by the Soviets in 1956.
The creation of the Magnum agency
In 1947, Cartier-Bresson presented a major retrospective of his work at the MoMA, thus formalizing the concealment of his communist political commitment.
In collaboration with his communist friends Robert Capa and David Seymour, he founded Magnum in 1947, a self-managed photographers' cooperative. They decide to focus on photojournalism and reportage, abandoning surreal photography. Cartier-Bresson became a photography expert for the United Nations in August 1947. He made several trips to India, Pakistan, Kashmir and Burma, witnessing the consequences of partition and photographing historical events such as funerals of Gandhi.
At Magnum's request, he travels to Beijing to document the fall of the Kuomintang and the rush of people to the banks in Shanghai. In 1954, he obtained a visa to travel to the Soviet Union, where he photographed the last hours of the post-Stalin thaw regime. He also covered the Cuban missile crisis in 1963, with his photographs published in Life.
Cartier-Bresson produces reports, but he also devotes time to long-term personal projects. He is interested in dance, particularly in Bali, and studies the way bodies in motion fit into the urban space. He also explores themes such as man and machine, icons of power, consumer society and crowds. These long-term documentary accumulations allow him to carry out a real "visual anthropology", studying the human being in his visual language.
Unfortunately, Robert Capa and David Seymour lost their lives in the exercise of their profession, Capa in Indochina in 1954 and Seymour during the Suez Canal crisis in 1956.
During his career, Cartier-Bresson also produced portraits of painters, works on France and its landscapes, as well as thematic series exploring different subjects and artistic expressions.
Back to drawing
Over the years, Cartier-Bresson felt a certain fatigue from the intense life he led, and his desire to take photos changed. In 1966, he met Martine Franck, a photographer who would become his second wife in 1970. With the birth of their daughter Mélanie in 1972, Cartier-Bresson aspired to a calmer and more sedentary life.
He supports the candidacy of René Dumont in the presidential elections of 1974 and recognizes himself in humanism, although he is doubtful in the face of the unanimity often present in this philosophical current. He always seeks to faithfully reflect the geographical and historical contexts in which he takes his photographs.
He begins to break away from the Magnum agency he founded, because he disapproves of the behavior of his young colleagues who adopt consumption patterns and even engage in advertising. He gradually withdrew from the agency's business, ceased to respond to reporting orders and devoted himself to organizing its archives. From 1972, he returned to drawing, although he continued to take photos as he pleased, always keeping his Leica handy.
For Cartier-Bresson, drawing is an art of meditation, very different from photography. His photographic work has often been reduced to the idea of the "decisive moment", but he believes that this formulation is the result of an erroneous translation and that many of his photos do not necessarily belong to a "decisive moment". " accurate. He attaches as much importance to the composition of the image, which requires prior knowledge and time, as to capturing a fleeting moment. He sees his photographic practice as being close to hunting, requiring knowledge of the terrain and observation of lifestyles.
Cartier-Bresson did not appreciate color photography and practiced it only out of professional necessity. He feels that color films are more restrictive due to their slowness, and the values they offer are, according to him, too far from reality compared to the shades of gray of black and white.
Throughout his life, Cartier-Bresson photographed several masters of Tibetan Buddhism and was actively involved in the Tibetan cause. In 1996, he was appointed honorary professor at the Chinese Academy of Fine Arts and wrote a letter denouncing the persecutions against Tibet.
In 2003, a major retrospective exhibition was dedicated to Cartier-Bresson at the National Library of France, highlighting his communist commitment and his militancy. He died in August 2004 and is buried in Montjustin, in the Luberon, alongside his wife Martine Franck, who died in 2012.
Main works and publications
"Images on the run" (1952): This is the first major book by Cartier-Bresson, which presents a selection of his photographs taken between 1932 and 1950. The book is considered a reference in the field of photography and highlights showcasing his distinctive style based on the decisive moment.
"Les Européens" (1955): In this book, Cartier-Bresson captures the daily life of post-war Europeans, highlighting the cultural contrasts and realities of the time.
"La Chine au travail" (1958): This book documents Cartier-Bresson's trip to China in 1958, where he testifies to the social and economic transformations of the country under the communist regime.
"India" (1966): Cartier-Bresson explores India through his photographs, capturing the country's cultural diversity, religious rituals and scenes of daily life.
"From one China to another" (1954-1955): This book presents the work of Cartier-Bresson during his travels in China between 1948 and 1955, covering the period of transition between the nationalist regime and the communist regime.
"Mexico" (1934-1964): This publication brings together the photographs taken by Cartier-Bresson during his many trips to Mexico, highlighting the cultural richness of the country and the social realities of the time.
"Les Danses à Bali" (1997): This book brings together Cartier-Bresson's photographs taken during his stay in Bali in the 1930s, exploring the pictorial language of dance and Balinese culture.
Prizes and Awards
Nadar Prize (1954): Henri Cartier-Bresson won the prestigious Nadar Prize for his book "Images à la Sautte", which has become an emblematic work of photography.
National Grand Prize for Photography (1981): He was honored by the French Ministry of Culture with the National Grand Prize for Photography for his outstanding contribution to the art of photography.
Hasselblad Prize (1982): Cartier-Bresson received the Hasselblad Prize, considered one of the highest distinctions in the field of photography. This prize recognizes his entire career and his lasting influence on photographic art.
Erna and Victor Hasselblad Prize (1989): He was awarded a second time by the Hasselblad Foundation for his outstanding contribution to photography.
Prize of the Cultural Foundation of the German Senate (1991): Henri Cartier-Bresson was honored by the Cultural Foundation of the German Senate for his outstanding photographic work.
German Booksellers' Peace Prize (2003): He was awarded for his commitment to peace and intercultural understanding through his art.
Main exhibitions
Individual exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York (1947): Cartier-Bresson inaugurated his first major retrospective at the MoMA, thus making a remarkable entry into the world of photographic art.
Solo Exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in London (1970): This exhibition featured a comprehensive retrospective of Cartier-Bresson's work, highlighting his most iconic photographs and his influence on documentary photography.
Individual exhibition at the National Library of France (2003): This major retrospective exhibition, entitled "Henri Cartier-Bresson: Photographs", was organized a year before his death and presented an important selection of his most famous works.
Individual exhibition at the Center national d'art et de culture Georges Pompidou in Paris (2014): This exhibition, entitled "Henri Cartier-Bresson", was a major retrospective of his work, highlighting his most influential photographs and exploring his commitment policy.
Group exhibitions of the Magnum agency: As co-founder of the Magnum Photos agency, Cartier-Bresson participated in numerous group exhibitions with his fellow photographers, highlighting their committed documentary work.
The influences of Henri Cartier-Bresson in contemporary culture
Documentary photography and photojournalism: Cartier-Bresson is considered one of the pioneers of photojournalism and documentary photography. His approach based on the decisive moment influenced many photographers who adopted his vision of the world and his ability to capture meaningful moments. Contemporary photographers such as Steve McCurry and Sebastião Salgado were influenced by his work and sought to document similar human stories through their photographs.
Cinema: Cartier-Bresson also exerted an influence on cinema, in particular in the field of auteur cinema. His mastery of composition, framing and visual storytelling has inspired many directors, including Martin Scorsese, who has cited Cartier-Bresson as an inspiration for his own films. French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet was also inspired by Cartier-Bresson's visual style in his works, especially in the film "Amelie".
Fashion: Cartier-Bresson's aesthetic, characterized by his keen sense of composition and movement, also influenced the field of fashion. Renowned fashion photographers such as Peter Lindbergh were inspired by his work, taking a more documentary and spontaneous approach to fashion photography. Fashion magazines were also influenced by Cartier-Bresson's aesthetic, emphasizing more natural compositions and fleeting moments captured during photo shoots.
Contemporary Art: Cartier-Bresson's work has had a significant impact on the world of contemporary art. Many contemporary artists are inspired by his ability to capture the essence of reality and explore social and political themes through imagery. Photographers like Nan Goldin and Alec Soth have been influenced by his documentary approach and commitment to visual storytelling. Conceptual artists and visual artists also draw inspiration from his work in their exploration of photography as a medium of artistic expression.
Quotes from Henri Cartier-Bresson
"To photograph is to put the head, the eye and the heart on the same line of sight. It's a way of life."
"Your first 10,000 photos are the worst."
"You have to be immersed in your subject. You cannot be neutral or indifferent."
"Photography is, for me, an instantaneous impulse, which comes from an intuitive and conscious recognition of potential visual excitement."
"Photography is for me a continuous movement between the exterior and the interior."
"Photography is a brief complicity between foresight and chance."
"Photography is such an instantaneous truth that it is hardly conceivable as a truth. The images do not lie, the comments lie."
"Photography is a way of talking about what excites me."
"Photography is not just a recording of reality, it is also an interpretation of what we see."
"I do not look, I find."
10 incongruous things to know about
Before devoting himself fully to photography, Cartier-Bresson had a passion for archery. He was even a member of the French archery team.
Cartier-Bresson was also a great traveler. He traveled the world for many years and visited countries such as India, China, Indonesia and Mexico.
Unlike many photographers, Cartier-Bresson was not a fan of color photography. He greatly preferred to work in black and white and practiced color photography only out of professional necessity.
Cartier-Bresson was a strong advocate of film photography and continued to use film cameras throughout his career, even in the digital age.
He had a close relationship with many famous artists and writers of his time, such as Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus.
Cartier-Bresson was known for his understated approach when shooting. He preferred to blend in with the crowd and capture spontaneous moments rather than have his subjects pose.
He was imprisoned for nearly three years during World War II. After escaping from a prisoner of war camp, he joined a resistance group in Lyon and documented the fighting during the Liberation of Paris.
Cartier-Bresson was a great lover of jazz music. He particularly enjoyed listening to artists such as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.
He was influenced by the philosophies and ideas of Buddhism. Her passion for meditation and spirituality has been reflected in her contemplative approach to photography.
In addition to photography, Cartier-Bresson was also passionate about drawing. After retiring from photography, he devoted much of his time to this form of artistic expression.
Jean Dubreil