Henri Cartier-Bresson became known for “the decisive moment,” an instantaneous composition of a scene, for which the photographer must act quickly and intuitively. As a photojournalist for Magnum Photos, the agency he founded with his colleagues Robert Capa and David “Chim” Seymour, he traveled across the world, photographing some of the most important events of the 20th century. Early in his career, he developed a distinct style of photography and made some of his most famous and enduring images.
Date
Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.
Julien Levy Collection, Special Photography Acquisition Fund
Reference Number
1979.69
Extended information about this artwork
Sire, Agnes and William Ewing. 2004. “Documentary and Anti-Graphic Photographs; Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans.” Exh. cat. Steidl. p. 125
Schaffner, Ingrid and Lisa Jacobs. 1998. “Julien Levy: Portrait of an Art Gallery.” Exh. cat. The MIT Press. p. 138, pl. 46.
Art Institute of Chicago, “Photographs from the Julien Levy Collection: Starting with Atget,” December 11, 1976–February 20, 1977; traveled to the International Center of Photography, New York, April 21-May 29, 1977; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, November 4-December 18 1977; Fogg Museum, Cambridge, Massachusetts, January 13-Ferbruary 26, 1978; Lakeview Center for the Arts and Sciences, Peoria, Illinois, March 16-April 30, 1978; and Cincinnati Art Museum, November 17-December 24, 1978. (David Travis)
University of California at Berkley, University Art Museum, “Anxious Visions: Surrealist Art,” October 3, 1990–January 6, 1991.
New York, New York, The Equitable Gallery, “Julien Levy: Portrait of an Art Gallery,” August 13–October 31, 1998.
Paris, France, Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation “Documentary and Anti-Graphic Photography: Henri Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans and Manuel Alvarez-Bravo,” September 7–December 22, 2004; traveled to Switzerland, Musee de L’Elysee, February 10–April 10, 2005.
Art Institute of Chicago, “Far from Home: Photography, Travel, and Inspiration,” January 20–May 6, 2007. (Elizabeth Siegel and Newell G. Smith)
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