Gisèle Freund
Encyclopedia
Gisèle Freund was a German-born French photographer, famous for her documentary photography
and portraits of writers and artists. Her best-known book is Photographie et société (1974), about the uses and abuses of the photographic medium.
to a wealthy Jewish family. Her father was a keen art collector with an interest in the work of photographer Karl Blossfeldt
, who was producing his close-up studies exploring the forms of natural objects. Freund's father gave her a Leica camera as a present for her high school graduation. At university she became an active member of a student socialist group and was determined to use photography as an integral part of her socialist practice.
In 1933, with Hitler taking over she was doubly threatened as a socialist activist and also as a Jew, and managed to escape to Paris
, her negative
s strapped around her body to get them past the border guards.
in England for Life Magazine. Freund's dissertation was published in book form by Adrienne Monnier
(1892–1955). One of her best-known early works shows one of the last political street demonstrations in Germany before Hitler took power.
"France" (1945)
"Mexique precolombien" (1954)
"James Joyce in Paris. His final years" (1965)
"Le monde et ma camera" (1970)
"Photographie et societe" (1974)
Documentary photography
Documentary photography usually refers to a popular form of photography used to chronicle significant and historical events. It is typically covered in professional photojournalism, but it may also be an amateur, artistic, or academic pursuit...
and portraits of writers and artists. Her best-known book is Photographie et société (1974), about the uses and abuses of the photographic medium.
Early life
Freund was born near BerlinBerlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
to a wealthy Jewish family. Her father was a keen art collector with an interest in the work of photographer Karl Blossfeldt
Karl Blossfeldt
Karl Blossfeldt was a German photographer, sculptor, teacher and artist who worked in Berlin, Germany. He is best known for his close-up photographs of plants and living things. He was inspired, as was his father, by nature and the way in which plants grow...
, who was producing his close-up studies exploring the forms of natural objects. Freund's father gave her a Leica camera as a present for her high school graduation. At university she became an active member of a student socialist group and was determined to use photography as an integral part of her socialist practice.
In 1933, with Hitler taking over she was doubly threatened as a socialist activist and also as a Jew, and managed to escape to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, her negative
Negative (photography)
In photography, a negative may refer to three different things, although they are all related.-A negative:Film for 35 mm cameras comes in long narrow strips of chemical-coated plastic or cellulose acetate. As each image is captured by the camera onto the film strip, the film strip advances so that...
s strapped around her body to get them past the border guards.
Notable work
In 1936 Freund photographed the effects of the DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
in England for Life Magazine. Freund's dissertation was published in book form by Adrienne Monnier
Adrienne Monnier
Adrienne Monnier was a French poet, bookseller and publisher and an important figure in the modernist writing scene in Paris in the 1920s and 1930s.-"La Maison des Amis des Livres":...
(1892–1955). One of her best-known early works shows one of the last political street demonstrations in Germany before Hitler took power.
Books published by Gisele Freund
"La photographie en France au dix-neuvieme siècle"(1936)"France" (1945)
"Mexique precolombien" (1954)
"James Joyce in Paris. His final years" (1965)
"Le monde et ma camera" (1970)
"Photographie et societe" (1974)
External links
- About women's history
- A biography
- Gisele Freund fonds at University of Victoria, Special Collections
- Gisèle Freund Photographs of James Joyce in Paris at University of Victoria, Special Collections