Brassaï
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Fundación Mapfre Carrer Diputació 250, 08007 Barcelona
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©Estate Brassai Sucession, Paris
Credit ©Estate Brassaï Succession, Paris.
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©Estate Brassai Sucession, Paris
Credit ©Estate Brassaï Succession, Paris.
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©Estate Brassai Sucession, Paris
Credit ©Estate Brassaï Succession, Paris.
Born in 1899 in Transylvania, Romania, Gyula Halász first discovered Paris at the age of five when he and his father lived there for a year. However, due to the First World War, it wasn’t until 1924 that he was able to return to the French capital and once again observe the characters that had fascinated him in his childhood.
Going by the pseudonym of Brassaï—inspired by his hometown Brasov—he set about capturing the sombre and seedy inhabitants of Paris’ Montparnasse district. He wandered by night in the most deserted back streets, using a half-hour exposure with his Voigtlander 6.5 x 9cm camera to portray the lives of these once stimagatised Parisians—prostitutes, madams, transvestites and criminals.
In 1933, he published the now famous book Paris de nuit (Paris by night), and Voluptés de Paris (Pleasures of Paris) two years later. Brassaï was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum in 1979.
This exhibition presents the darker side of nighttime Paris through his lens.
For a list of current exhibitions, art shows and workshops, check our online calendar.
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