An exhibition featuring the work of the 20th century photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson – seen by many as the father of photojournalism – is underway at the Beetles and Huxley gallery off Piccadilly in central London.
A Decisive Collection is centred around a private collection of images and is a celebration of one of the most important photographers to come out of the 20th century. It features a selection of some of Cartier-Bresson’s most famous photographs, alongside a number of virtually unseen images.
Cartier-Bresson is famous for his “Decisive Moment” technique, when a photograph captures the essence of a spontaneous event, and this collection includes some of his most candid images, including Picasso at home in the Rue Des Grands-Augustins, Paris 1944.
This breathtaking collection also features a number of other celebrity portraits including Coco Chanel, artists Henry Matisse and Francis Bacon; author Albert Camus and psychotherapist Carl Gustav Jung.
Other highlights are the extremely rare photographs of Paris during the 1968 student protests and some images of the USSR in the early 1970s, in which Cartier-Bresson has mastered the balance of powerful subject matter with perfectly timed skill.
Henri Cartier-Bresson: A Decisive Collection is presented in association with world famous camera manufacturer Leica. The exhibition features a number of the brand’s lightweight vintage cameras, similar to those used by Cartier-Bresson throughout his career.
This fantastic display is a collection of masterfully moving photographs by one of the greatest photographers to have lived and is definitely not one to be missed, so catch it before it’s gone!
Henri Cartier-Bresson: A Decisive Collection is open Mon – Sat at the Beetles and Huxley gallery,3-5 Swallow Street, London until March 26.