Josef Koudelka

Biography

Josef Koudelka (born with Boskovice in Moravie the January 10th 1938) is a French Photographe of Czech origin. A friend of its father, a baker, initiates it with photography and Josef Koudelka starts to photograph its family and her friends. It continues studies at the Technical University of Prague (of 1956 with 1961), when it meets Jiri Jenicek, photographer and critical, which encourages it to expose its images. It carries out then its first exposure in the Théâtre Semafor to Prague and meets Anna Favora, critic art, which becomes his/her friend and her collaborator. He travels in Italy. Its photographs reflect tearings, the revolts and the storms of its country: images where the individuals seem in shift in a worrying world that they undergo more than they do not control. Its first images testify to a bohemian life, carried out in parallel to its life of aeronautical engineer. He follows the life of the Gipsies to Czechoslovakia Until 1970, photography much and takes part in stage performances. He becomes member of the Union of the Czechoslovakian Artists. In 1966, it publishes a book on the spectacle Ubu King . It is time for him, in 1967, to give up aeronautics and to devote themselves fully to photography… It exposes the same year, for the first time, its photographs on the gipsies. Then, it will photograph the gipsies of Romania. It photographs the invasion of the troops of the Warsaw Pact, which brutally put fine at the experiment Printemps of Prague, in August 1968 in the streets of the Czech capital, and it is first of all anonymously that its images are published in the the United States. It receives the price Robert Capa for these images, icons outstanding of the political history of Czechoslovakia (without its name being mentioned). In 1970, it leaves its country, becomes stateless person and settles in England until in 1979, continuing its photographic work on the Gipsies and the various habits of the countries of Europe, always in search of moments of freedom. He becomes member of the Agence Magnum in 1971 and binds friendship with Henri Cartier-Bresson and Robert Delpire. In 1975, it makes its first personal exposure to the Musée of modern art of New York

It is in 1984 that a first exposure of importance is devoted to him, with the Hayward Gallery of London. After sixteen years of anonymity, its photographs praguoises of the intervention of the troops of the Warsaw Pact are published for the first time under its name.

In 1986, it starts to use a panoramic apparatus and is participating in the photographic mission of DATAR. The following year, it is naturalized French.

After twenty years of exile, it turns over in its native land in 1990, after the Révolution of velvet and its photographs of 1968 are finally published in Prague. And in 1992, it goes to Beirut and photographs the downtown area for a collective work there.

Rewards

1967: Price of the Union of the Czechoslovakian Artists (innovative qualities of its work in connection with the theater)
1969: Prix Robert Wrapped (that it obtains anonymously)
1987: The national Grand Prix of Photography, Paris
1991: Price Henri Cartier-Bresson
1992: Price Hasselblad

See too

Internal bonds

Contacts

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