Wednesday, April 04, 2012
Rating : 4.5/5
Number of Pages : 167
Format : Non Fiction, Photography
Reason for Reading : Course Reading Material
Another collection of photography work by Henri Cartier-Bresson. This time all of the photographs were taken around Paris. Some were in the Europeans collection, but most were new to me. The introduction by Vera Feyder read more like a poem than an introductory text which fitted the pictures nicely. It gives a little bit of background about Cartier-Bresson and mentions his "decisive moment" which I keep hearing about.
What I especially liked is that these are not simple tourist snaps. They are well thought out and beautifully composed. In the introduction it quotes Cartier-Bresson as saying "You see, photography is nothing, it's life that interests me. Life, do you see?" which is definitely what you notice immediately form opening the collection. Not as many pictures jumped out as the Europeans collection, but it was still a beyond excellent collection and I have learnt a lot form looking through these over the last few days. Below are two of my favourite pictures from this collection that weren't in the Europeans edition.
Porte d'Aubervilliers (1932) - The young boy looks straight out of Oliver Twist despite being in Paris. Another of his shots that is full of shapes. Lines on the sheds, diagonals of the roof, triangle of his arms and feet as well as the pavement. The light picks up the top of his hat nicely.
Champes-Elysees (May 1968) - The sun is beautiful shining through the flag which is held out so straight by the girl balancing on then back of the bicycle. The bicycle is placed parallel to the broken lines marking the lane. I really like the white of her legs against the dark bike and male.
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3 comments:
That's very helpful information..thanks for sharing it to us..
Rhinoa, you have really changed the look of your blog, and I like it! Wow. I also like the pictures you posted about Cartier-Bresson. Are you interested in photography as an art or doing it? What I like about the two photos that you posted, is the texture - these photos have context, and I can feel all the elements - somehow he has captured the feel of her wool skirt,sweater, the flag material, the rough road - this is a picture of life. It's quite amazing. Thanks for posting it. And it's good to see you back!
Hi Susan, thanks for your comment. I've started studying photography part time which is why I'm reading/looking at a lot of photography related books at the moment. I am still reading fiction, just been super busy and not had a chance to write many reviews so far this year. Glad you like the new look and hope you are good :)
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