For Paris Photo, the galerie Daniel Blau based both in London and Munich presents two exhibitions. The first called “Life + War” exhibits rare vintage prints from the famous Life magazine and the second is an exhibition dedicated to Margaret Bourke-White with pictures never seen before.
LIFE + WAR : An exhibition of rare vintage prints, 1943 – 1945
This exhibition concentrates on the work of twenty one LIFE photographers who covered the various campaigns of the Second World War. They include Margaret Bourke-White, W. Eugene Smith, George Rodger, Bob Landry, Dimitri Kessel, Ralph Morse, George Silk, among others.
LIFE magazine ran from 1883 to 1972. Initially a humour and general interest magazine, in 1936 it was relaunched as a weekly news magazine with a strong commitment to photojournalism and a belief that images could tell a story without the need for explanation.
David E. Scherman said: “If you are a war correspondent writing dispatches, it is often a matter of choice whether to write your story from first-hand, front line experience or piece it together from information reaching you in safer refuge in the rear. But if you are a combat photographer, no such choice exists: In order to take a good war picture you must be there”.
Concentrating on the years 1943 to 1945, the exhibition examines the extraordinary breadth of work published. Whether brutal, or sensitive, and sometimes light-hearted, it is always powerful. Nearly seventy years on, the impact of these photographs is as strong as it was when they were first seen, the scale of destruction and depth of human suffering is palpable. Each print is an astonishing artistic testimony. That pictures taken in such extreme conditions survive for posterity at all is remarkable, given the ravages of war, accident, and censorship. Six of LIFE’s D-Day photographers had their films irretrievably damaged in the darkroom in London – of the hundred or so shots taken on Omaha Beach by Robert Capa, only eleven could be printed – and Margaret Bourke-White lost an entire set of pictures taken during the battle of Monte Cassino when they were misplaced by the censor in the Pentagon.
Margaret Bourke-White
Daniel Blau presents also an exhibition of vintage prints by Margaret Bourke-White. The show features unseen photographs and new discoveries including warm-toned contact prints and Second World War works, along with some of her most popular architectural photographs, and early works.
In the male-dominated world of early twentieth century photojournalism, American photographer Margaret Bourke-White (1904-1971) was a pioneer. In her extensive and diverse career, she photographed many historical moments. Bourke-White’ s intuition and dedication gave her the knack of being at the right place at the right time. She was the first western photographer permitted to document soviet Industry after the revolution, the first female war correspondant, the first woman permitted to work in combat zones and the first woman to fly aboard a bombing mission during the Second World War. She shot the first cover of what was to become the iconic LIFE magazine in 1936. She said, “The camera is a remarkable instrument. Saturate yourself with your subject and the camera will all but take you by the hand.
The exhibition includes a selection of her sharp and precise images of the Second World War. Bourke-White’ s war photographs embody her courage and determination. She became the first woman photographer to accompany the US Armed forces. While crossing the Atlantic to North Africa her transport ship was torpedoed and destroyed. Bourke-White survived the attack and continued on her travels to Europe to cover the bitter daily struggle of the Allied infantrymen in the Italian campaign.
But her work did not only focus on armed conflicted. Her early career ranged from architectural photography to all kinds of assignments for Fortune Magazine. The Exhibition presents Bourke-White’s early works including a selection of her well-known architectural prints of the Statue of Liberty and the Capitol building in Washington. Young Bourke-White showed her pioneering recognisable style even in photos of drought, or the Worlds most famous yacht race. These photographs represent the most gentle side of her work.
EXHIBITION
LIFE + War
& Margaret Bourke-White
Paris Photo 2014
13 – 16 November 2014
Stand B20
Grand Palais
Avenue Winston Churchill
75005 Paris
France
http://www.parisphoto.com
INFORMATIONS
Daniel Blau
51 Hoxton Square
London N1 6PB
United Kingdom
tel +44 (0)207 831 7998
Galerie Daniel Blau
Odeonsplatz 12
80539 München
Germany
tel +49 (0)89 29 73 42
http://www.danielblau.com
