PHOTO: André Kertész at the Jeu de Paume

The Jeu de Paume presents a retrospective of photographer André Kertész (1894 – 1985), one of the greats of avant-garde photography. After taking up photography in his native Hungary, Kertész then moved to Paris, where he spent a decade fraternizing with other émigré artists (including Hungarian sculptor Etienne Beöthy and Piet Mondrian) and capturing the streets and sights of Paris in his own innovative style. He moved to New York in 1936, where he settled. Kertész avoided the early 20th century -isms (particularly Surrealism), but his explorations of composition, distortion, cropping and shadow are all testament to his contribution to photographic language. He was also key in the development of photojournalism, with numerous photo series published in books and magazines. Despite the variety of subjects photographed by Kertész, a slight melancholy pervades his oeuvre, whether in the form of a solitary figures on rain-sodden Paris streets, a snow-covered Washington Square Park or a single bird caught in flight against deserted urban chimney stacks.
Until 6 Feb.
Jeu de Paume, 1 pl de la Concorde, 8th. M° Concorde. www.jeudepaume.org/