Éva Besnyő (1910–2003) was a Dutch-Hungarian photographer who participated in the ''Nieuwe Fotografie'' (New Photography) movement.

Biography

Born in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, Besnyö was brought up in a well-to-do Jewish home. In 1928, she started to study photography at József Pécsi's studio where she also served an apprenticeship.Marion Beckers, "Eva Besnyö"
Jewish Women Encyclopedia. Retrieved 25 March 2013. In 1930, at the age of 20, she moved to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

where she first worked for advertising photographer René Ahrlé before working on photoreportages with the press photographer Peter Weller. She became part of the social and political circle of intellectuals which included

György Kepes György Kepes �ɟøɾɟ ˈkɛpɛʃ(October 4, 1906 – December 29, 2001) was a Hungarian-born painter, photographer, designer, educator, and art theorist. After immigrating to the U.S. in 1937, he taught design at the New Bauhaus (later the Sc ...

Joris Ivens Georg Henri Anton "Joris" Ivens (18 November 1898 – 28 June 1989) was a Dutch documentary filmmaker. Among the notable films he directed or co-directed are '' A Tale of the Wind'', '' The Spanish Earth'', ''Rain'', ''...A Valparaiso'', ''M ...

László Moholy-Nagy László Moholy-Nagy (; ; born László Weisz; July 20, 1895 – November 24, 1946) was a Hungarian painter and photographer as well as a professor in the Bauhaus school. He was highly influenced by constructivism and a strong advocate of the i ...

, Otto Umbehr and

Robert Capa Robert Capa (born Endre Ernő Friedmann; October 22, 1913 – May 25, 1954) was a Hungarian-American war photographer and photojournalist as well as the companion and professional partner of photographer Gerda Taro. He is considered by some to ...

. In 1931, she opened her own studio where she was successful in receiving agency work. Her well-known photograph of the Romani boy with a cello on his back stems from that period."Eva Besnyö: From 22 May 2012 until 23 September 2012"
Jeu de Paume. Retrieved 25 March 2013. Threatened by the onset of

National Socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

in 1932, she moved to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

with her Dutch friend John Fernhout whom she married. With the assistance of her mother in law

Charley Toorop Charley Toorop (24 March 1891 – 5 November 1955) was a Dutch painter and lithographer. Her full name was Annie Caroline Pontifex Fernhout-Toorop. Life Charley Toorop was born in Katwijk. She was the daughter of Jan Toorop and Annie Hall. ...

, she participated in exhibitions which led to commissions in press photography, portraits, fashion and architecture. Besnyö was a member of

Nederlandsche Vereeniging voor Ambachts- en Nijverheidskunst The Nederlandsche Vereeniging voor Ambachts- en Nijverheidskunst (V.A.N.K.) (Dutch Association for Craft and Industrial Art) was founded in 1904. It was founded by Jacob Pieter van den Bosch, Herman Hana, Klaas van Leeuwen, Theo Molkenboer, and Wi ...

(V.A.N.K.) the Dutch Association for Craft and Craft Art. Her solo exhibition in the Van Lier art gallery in 1933 consolidated her recognition in the Netherlands. Besnyö experienced a further breakthrough with her architectural photography only a few years later: translating the idea of functionalist "New Building" into a "New Seeing". Unable to work during the

German occupation of the Netherlands Despite Dutch neutrality, Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 as part of Fall Gelb (Case Yellow). On 15 May 1940, one day after the bombing of Rotterdam, the Dutch forces surrendered. The Dutch government and the royal family re ...

, she went into hiding. After the war she again received commissions for documentary work but became less active as she raised her two children fathered by the graphic designer Wim Brusse. In the 1970s, she was active in the Dutch feminist movement

Dolle Mina Dolle Mina (Mad Mina) was a Dutch feminist group founded in December 1969 that campaigned for equal rights for women. It was named after an early Dutch feminist, Wilhelmina Drucker. It was a left-wing radical feminist activist group that aimed to ...

, fighting for equal rights and photographing street protests.

Photographs for Dutch stamps (1947)

Besnyo1947-2.png Besnyo1947-4.png Besnyo1947-7.png Besnyo1947-10.png Besnyo1947-20.png

Exhibitions

*1955: work selected for

The Family of Man ''The Family of Man'' was an ambitious exhibition of 503 photography, photographs from 68 countries curated by Edward Steichen, the director of the New York City Museum of Modern Art's (MoMA) Department of Photography. According to Steichen, ...

international touring exhibition by

Edward Steichen Edward Jean Steichen (March 27, 1879 – March 25, 1973) was a Luxembourgish American photographer, painter, and curator, renowned as one of the most prolific and influential figures in the history of photography. Steichen was credited with tr ...

and

MoMA Moma may refer to: People * Moma Clarke (1869–1958), British journalist * Moma Marković (1912–1992), Serbian politician * Momčilo Rajin (born 1954), Serbian art and music critic, theorist and historian, artist and publisher Places ; Ang ...

; *1982: ''N’halve eeuw werk'', Amsterdams Historisch Museum. Amsterdam; *1991: ''Onbekende foto’s'', Jewish Historical Museum. Amsterdam *1992: ''Photographien 1930–1989'', Das Verborgene Museum. Berlin *1992: '' Vintage Prints'', Amsterdams Historisch Museum. Amsterdam; *2012: Retrospective, Jeu de Paume, Paris."Eva Besnyö, 1910-2003 : l'image sensible"
Jeu de Paume. Retrieved 25 March 2013.

References

External links

Examples of Eva Besnyö's work from the Van Lier Art Gallery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Besnyo, Eva 1910 births 2002 deaths Artists from Amsterdam Photographers from Budapest Dutch Jews Hungarian emigrants to the Netherlands Dutch women photographers Hungarian Jews Hungarian women photographers Hungarian photographers

Biography

Photographs for Dutch stamps (1947)

Exhibitions

References

Further reading

External links