The practitioner
This week’s practitioner is the photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, who was a French humanist photographer and painter. He started taking photos in 1929 and became famous for his street photography that he practiced all over the world.
About the photo
The title of the photograph is Prostituées. It is a one of Henri Cartier-Bresson’s pictures taken on Calle Cuauhtemoctzin in Mexico City in 1934. © Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum
The authoring of the photo
The photo was taken in Mexico City on a street known for its many brothels. It looks like it is taken pretty spontaneously (because he also has another similar photo from the same street also of a prostitute). He thinks a lot about the composition of the photo. The two windows show his eye for architecture and shapes and the photo is taking from above as if he is looking down at the women. The women do not seem to mind him and they look quite comfortable.
Publishing
The photo was printed in 1946 (23.4 x 34.6 cm gelatin silver print). I find this a bit strange since it was shot in 1934. I guess it tells a lot about the time; that is was not very usual to take many photos and you rarely got them printet.
Distribution
The photo has been showcased in several museums over the last 30 years, among these are Museum of Modern Art, New York and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Thereby the photo has been available for public acces. I don’t know where it has been for the first 45 years.