Willy Ronis by Willy Ronis

Book excerpt: Willy Ronis curated and commentated on the iconic images featured in this beautiful volume that retraces his career and contributions to photography and photojournalism. A key figure in twentieth-century photography, Willy Ronis conveyed the poetic reality of postwar Paris and Provence in iconic black-and-white photographs. Influenced by Alfred Stieglitz and Ansel Adams, and amicable with his contemporary Magnum photographers, Ronis was the first French photographer to contribute to Life magazine. In the 1950s, MoMA curator Edward Steichen featured Ronis—along with Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Doisneau, and Brassaï—in the groundbreaking exhibitions The Family of Man and Five French Photographers. Throughout his life, this powerhouse of humanist photography kept meticulous records of his work, curating each era into albums, which are reproduced here for the first time. Timeless photographs of postwar France and its inhabitants are accompanied by the photographer’s original observations and comments, framing the images within their technical and historical context. Photography historian Matthieu Rivallin’s critical perspective adds nuance to the photographer’s notes, and the ensemble is a groundbreaking and definitive reference on the myriad aspects of the artists’ immense career and an essential volume for all photography aficionados.