Description

CARTIER-BRESSON’S EUROPEANS, BOLDLY INSCRIBED BY HIM

CARTIER-BRESSON, Henri. The Europeans: Photographs. New York: Simon and Schuster, (1955). Folio, original red, blue and yellow pictorial paper boards. Housed in a custom clamshell box.

First edition in English, boldly inscribed on the title page: “for Michael and Mary. Henri Cartier-Bresson.” Featuring 114 of Cartier-Bresson’s photographs and cover designed by Joan Miró.

This collection of photographs focuses on the faces and scenes of Europe as captured by the lens of Cartier-Bresson’s Leica camera. “Cartier-Bresson has a special interest in photographing people and in capturing the essence of what has not previously been seen. He is famous for his theory of the “decisive moment”—that is, seizing the split second when the subject stands revealed in its most significant aspect? Today he ranks as one of the most important and influential photographers of this century” (Blodgett, 96). Published the same year as the French first edition. This copy was inscribed to Michael and Mary Gallagher, New York photography dealers. Includes caption booklet. Without acetate dust wrapper and without blank front free endpaper. Photographs beautiful and fine. Covers bright and unfaded, with only lightest expert restoration to extremities of spine and corners. A near-fine copy, highly desirable inscribed.