Under the Fifth Republic, France’s current system, the head of state is the president, who is elected by direct universal suffrage. Influenced by the work of André Kertész, Eugène Atget, and Henri Cartier-Bresson, in more than twenty books he presented a charming vision of human frailty and life as a series of quiet, incongruous moments. [Eds. It started with the kiss. He won the court case against the Lavergnes. When he could escape from the studio, he photographed ever more in the streets of Paris. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. 'The Kiss' ruined the last years of his life. His mother died when he was seven. All over Europe, the old-style picture magazines were closing as television received the public's attention. In 1929, in an effort to improve his draftsmanship, he began photographing, just as Modernist ideas were beginning to promote photography as the prime medium for advertising and reportage. The photograph was published on 12 June 1950, issue of Life. Doisneau died six months later in 1994, having had a triple heart bypass and suffering from acute pancreatitis. [3][4][5], In 1932, he sold his first photographic story to Excelsior magazine. Add that to my mother suffering from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, and I think it's fair to say he died of sadness. The marvels of daily life are so exciting; no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street. Font designer and photography internship at Ulmann studio for … Doisneau continued to work, producing children's books, advertising photography, and celebrity portraits including Alberto Giacometti, Jean Cocteau, Fernand Léger, Georges Braque, and Pablo Picasso. He returned to freelance photography and sold photographs to Life and other international magazines. His mother died when he was seven, and he was subsequently raised by an unloving aunt. There he had his first contact with the arts, taking classes in figure drawing and still life. Robert Doisneau was born on April 14, 1912 in Gentilly, Seine [now Val-de-Marne, Île-de-France], France. Solo exhibition, Galerie du Château d’Eau, Toulouse, 1975 Solo Exhibition, Witkin Gallery, New York; Musée Réattu Arts Décoratifs, Nantes; Musée Réattu, Arles, 1975 Solo exhibition, Galerie et Fils, Brussels. They posed at the Place de la Concorde, the Rue de Rivoli and finally the Hôtel de Ville. In 1939, he was later hired by Charles Rado of the Rapho photographic agency and traveled throughout France in search of picture stories. During the same period, Doisneau also photographed in the streets and neighbourhoods of Paris, hoping to sell work to the picture magazines, which were expanding their use of photographs as illustration. Born in Gentilly (Val de Marne) April 14. He was appointed a Chevalier (Knight) of the Legion of Honour in 1984 by then French president, François Mitterrand.[1]. Robert Doisneau (April 14, 1912, Gentilly, Val-de-Marne – April 1, 1994) was a French photographer. We didn't mind. From then on, he photographed a vast array of people and events, often juxtaposing conformist and maverick elements in images marked by an exquisite sense of humour, by anti-establishment values, and, above all, by his deeply felt humanism. He was married to Pierrette Chaumaison. La presse étant quasi inexistante, il réalise quelques publicités, assure une série de portraits de scientifiques à la demande de Maximilien Vox. His mother died when he was seven, so he was then raised by an unloving aunt. [3][7][10], In 1936 Doisneau married Pierrette Chaumaison whom he had met in 1934 when she was cycling through a village where he was on holiday. [6] In 1991 he said that the years at the Renault car factory marked "the beginning of his career as a photographer and the end of his youth.". francia fotóművész, az utcai fotózás egyik jeles képviselője. "[3], Doisneau was in many ways a shy and humble man, similar to his photography, still delivering his own work at the height of his fame. He was a champion of humanist photography and with Henri Cartier-Bresson a pioneer of photojournalism. When he was 16 he took up amateur photography, but was reportedly so shy that he started by photographing cobble-stones before progressing to children and then adults. This resulted in them taking him to court for "taking their picture without their knowledge", because under French law an individual owns the rights to their own likeness. He is buried in the cemetery at Raizeux beside his wife. Doisneau worked with writers and poets such as Blaise Cendrars and Jacques Prévert, and he credited Prevert with giving him the confidence to photograph the everyday street scenes that most people simply ignored.[1]. He discovered a world of lies, and it hurt him. Written and researched by Stefano Cerquetani Robert Doisneau (Gentilly, France 14.04.1912 – Montrouge, France 01.04.1994) “To those who enjoy breathing the smell of incense, I recommend a different profession. Robert Doisneau was born in 1912 in Gentilly in the Val-de-Marne, France. by John Follain, "Nouvelles Images, Our Artists, Profile of Robert Doisneau", http://www.rps.org/annual-awards/Honorary-Fellowships, France – Education.gouv, Ecole Primaire Publique Doisneau (Robert), "Atelier Robert Doisneau | Chronologie des Expositions de Doisneau", "Galerie Claude Bernard: Robert Doisneau", "MNBA – Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes Santiago Chile, Santiago – Overview", "Robert Doisneau exhibition in Zaragoza, Spain – Mondrian's Room", "Bruce Silverstein Gallery Shows Works by Artists Who Found the Night to Be an Inspiring Subject", Robert Doisneau, un photographe au Muséum, Grande Galerie de l'Évolution (retrieved 2015-10-26), Maison de la Photographie Robert-Doisneau, Robert Doisneau: Seconds Snatched from Eternity, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Robert_Doisneau&oldid=995616139, Articles with dead external links from September 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2014, Articles with French-language sources (fr), Articles with unsourced statements from January 2016, Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with RKDartists identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SELIBR identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with TePapa identifiers, Wikipedia articles with Trove identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Grand Prix National de la Photographie, 1983, On 14 April 2012, Google celebrated his 100th birthday with a. Catalogue of an exhibition at Musée Réattu of Doisneau, 1947 Salon de la Photo, Bibliothèque, Paris, 1951 Exhibition with Brassaї, Willy Ronis, and Izis, Museum of Modern Art, New York. In the 1930s, he made photographs on the streets of Paris. He briefly joined the Alliance Photo Agency but rejoined the Rapho agency in 1946 and remained with them throughout his working life, despite receiving an invitation from Henri Cartier-Bresson to join Magnum Photos. Maybe if I were 20, success would change me. After his undistinguished youth behind the macrame curtains of a conventional middle-class family, Robert is fifteen when he learns engraving and lithography at the Estienne School in Paris and starts designing labels for drug packaging. Doisneau’s father died in active service in World War I when his son was just four years old. ‘Kiss by the Hotel de Ville’ was created in 1950 by Robert Doisneau. The photographer pulls the sleeve of the rushed man with a blank stare and shows him the free and permanent show of the street”. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Robert-Doisneau, World Health Organisation - Biography of Robert Doisneau. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. In 1948 he was contracted by Vogue to work as a fashion photographer. [1][6], His photographs never ridiculed the subjects; thus he refused to photograph women whose heads had been shaved as punishment for sleeping with Germans.[3]. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Robert Doisneau was a French photographer and early pioneer of photojournalism and street photography. In the 1930s he made photographs on the streets of Paris. He was in the army until 1940 and from then until the end of the war in 1945 used his draughtsmanship, lettering artistry, and engraving skills to forge passports and identification papers for the French Resistance. Robert Doisneau, (born April 14, 1912, Gentilly, France—died April 1, 1994, Broussais), French photographer noted for his poetic approach to street photography. 6 November 2005. They had two daughters, Annette (b. [9] The relationship between Delbart and Carteaud only lasted for nine months. Perhaps best for his famous 1950 image of a couple kissing on the streets of Paris— Le baiser de l'hôtel de ville (Kiss by the Town Hall) —Robert Doisneau, along with Henri Cartier-Bresson, was a pioneer of photojournalism. The 1950s were Doisneau's peak, but the 1960s were his wilderness years. He studied at the École Estienne in Chantilly and received diplomas in engraving and lithography. He then was raised by an unloving aunt.[1][3]. Maison de la photographie Robert Doisneau, Sunday Times.