Josef Koudelka (born 10 January 1938) is a Czech-French photographer. He is a member of

Magnum Photos Magnum Photos is an international photographic cooperative owned by its photographer-members, with offices in New York City, Paris, London and Tokyo. It was founded in 1947 in Paris by photographers Robert Capa, David Seymour (photographer), Davi ...

and has won awards such as the

Prix Nadar The Prix Nadar is an annual prize awarded for a photography book edited in France. The prize was created in 1955 by Association Gens d'Images and is awarded by a jury of photojournalists and publishing experts. The prize is named after Nadar, the ...

(1978), a Grand Prix National de la Photographie (1989), a Grand Prix Henri Cartier-Bresson (1991), and the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography (1992). Exhibitions of his work have been held at the

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, and is often identified as one of ...

and the International Center of Photography, New York; the

Hayward Gallery The Hayward Gallery is an art gallery within the Southbank Centre in central London, England and part of an area of major arts venues on the South Bank of the River Thames. It is sited adjacent to the other Southbank Centre buildings (the Roy ...

, London; the

Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam The Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (; Municipal Museum Amsterdam), colloquially known as the Stedelijk, is a museum for modern art, contemporary art, and design located in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

; and the Palais de Tokyo, Paris.

Biography

Koudelka was born in 1938 in the small

Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The me ...

n town of

Boskovice Boskovice (; german: Boskowitz) is a town in Blansko District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 12,000 inhabitants. The area of the historic town centre, Jewish quarter, château complex and castle ruin is well preser ...

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. He began photographing his family and the surroundings with a 6×6

Bakelite Polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, better known as Bakelite ( ), is a thermosetting phenol formaldehyde resin, formed from a condensation reaction of phenol with formaldehyde. The first plastic made from synthetic components, it was developed ...

camera. He studied at the

Czech Technical University in Prague Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU, cs, České vysoké učení technické v Praze, ČVUT) is one of the largest university, universities in the Czech Republic with 8 faculties, and is one of the oldest institutes of technology in Centra ...

(ČVUT) in 1956, receiving a degree in engineering in 1961. He staged his first photographic exhibition the same year. Later he worked as an aeronautical engineer in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

and

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

. Koudelka began taking commissions from theatre magazines, and regularly photographed stage productions at Prague's Theatre Behind the Gate on a Rolleiflex camera. In 1967, he decided to give up his career in engineering for full-time work as a photographer. Between 1962 and 1971, Koudelka travelled throughout Czechoslovakia and rural Romania, Hungary, France and Spain photographing

Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sig ...

. The Romani led a nomadic lifestyle and each summer Koudelka would travel for the project, "carrying a rucksack and a sleeping bag, sleeping in the open air, and living frugally". He had returned from photographing Romani people in Romania just two days before the Soviet invasion, in August 1968. He witnessed and recorded the military forces of the

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republic ...

as they invaded Prague and crushed reforms of the so-called

Prague Spring The Prague Spring ( cs, Pražské jaro, sk, Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Sec ...

. Some of Koudelka's negatives were smuggled out of Prague to the

agency, and published anonymously in ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' Magazine under the initials P. P. (Prague Photographer) for fear of reprisal to him and his family. Koudelka's pictures of the events became dramatic international symbols, and came to be "recognised as one of the most powerful photojournalistic essays of the 20th century". In 1969 the "anonymous Czech photographer" was awarded the Overseas Press Club's Robert Capa Gold Medal for photographs requiring exceptional courage. Many of his photographs of these events were not seen until decades later. With Magnum to recommend him to the British authorities, Koudelka applied for a three-month working visa and fled to England in 1970, where he applied for

political asylum The right of asylum (sometimes called right of political asylum; ) is an ancient juridical concept, under which people persecuted by their own rulers might be protected by another sovereign authority, like a second country or another enti ...

and stayed for more than a decade. In 1971 he joined Magnum as an Associate Member and became a Full Member in 1974. He continued to wander around Europe with his camera and little else. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Koudelka sustained his work through numerous grants and awards, and continued to exhibit and publish major projects like ''Gypsies'' (1975) and ''Exiles'' (1988). Sean O'Hagan, writing in ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' in 2011, described ''Gypsies'' as "a classic of documentary photography". Since 1986, he has worked with a panoramic camera and issued a compilation of these photographs in his book ''Chaos'' in 1999. Koudelka has had many other books of his work published, including in 2006 the retrospective volume ''Koudelka.'' He and his work received support and acknowledgment from his friend the French photographer

Henri Cartier-Bresson Henri Cartier-Bresson (; 22 August 1908 – 3 August 2004) was a French humanist photographer considered a master of candid photography, and an early user of 35mm film. He pioneered the genre of street photography, and viewed photography as cap ...

. He was also supported by the Czech

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

Anna Farova Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

. In 1987, Koudelka became a French citizen, and was able to return to Czechoslovakia for the first time, in 1990. He then produced ''Black Triangle,'' documenting the wasted landscape in the Podkrušnohoří region, the western tip of the Black Triangle's foothills of the Ore Mountains, located between Germany and the Czech Republic. Koudelka lives in France and Prague and is continuing his work documenting the European landscape. He is the father of two daughters, one who lives in England and the other in France, Lucina Hartley Koudelka, and of a son living in Italy, Nicola Koudelka.

Work

Koudelka's early work significantly shaped his later photography, and its emphasis on social and cultural rituals as well as death. He soon moved on to a more personal, in depth photographic study of the Gypsies of

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, and later

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. This work was exhibited in Prague in 1967. Throughout his career, Koudelka has been praised for his ability to capture the presence of the human spirit amidst dark landscapes. Desolation, waste, departure, despair and alienation are common themes in his work. His characters sometimes seem to come out of fairytales. Still, some see hope within his work – the endurance of human endeavor, in spite of its fragility. His later work focuses on the landscape removed of human subjects. His most recent book ''Wall: Israeli and Palestinian Landscapes'' was published by

Aperture Foundation Aperture Foundation is a nonprofit arts institution, founded in 1952 by Ansel Adams, Minor White, Barbara Morgan, Dorothea Lange, Nancy Newhall, Beaumont Newhall, Ernest Louie, Melton Ferris, and Dody Warren. Their vision was to create a forum fo ...

in 2013. This book is composed of panoramic landscapes that he made between 2008 and 2012, as his project for the photography collective This Place, organized by photographer Frédéric Brenner. A documentary about Koudelka's work there, called Koudelka Shooting Holy Land, was released in 2015.

Publications

*''Diskutujeme o morálce dneška.'' Czechoslovakia: Nakladatelství Politické Literatury, 1965. *''Kral Ubu: Rozbor inscenace Divadla Na Zábradlí v Praze'' (with Alfred Jarry). Czechoslovakia: Divadelní Ústav, 1966. * ''Rozbor insenace Divadla Na zábradlí v Praze,'' 1966. * ''Josef Koudelka,'' 1968. *''Gitans'' = ''Gypsies'' **''Gitans: la fin du voyage.'' Paris: Delpire, 1975. ASIN B0014M0TV8. **''Gypsies.'' New York:

Aperture In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. An opt ...

, 1975. . **''Gypsies.'' New York: Aperture, 2011. Revised and enlarged edition. . With an essay by Will Guy. **''Roma.'' Göttingen: Steidl, 2011. . German language edition. *''Josef Koudelka: I Grandi Fotografi.'' Italy: Fabbri, 1982. *''Josef Koudelka.'' Photo Poche, Centre National de la Photographie, France, 1984. * ''Josef Koudelka. Photographs by Josef Koudelka.'' Introduction by Bernard Cuau. Centre National de la Photographie, Paris, 1984. * ''Exiles.'' **Paris: Centre National de la Photographie; Paris: Delpire; New York: Aperture; London:

Thames & Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...

, 1988. . **Revised edition. Paris: Delpire; New York: Aperture, 1997. **Revised and expanded edition. London: Thames & Hudson (); New York: Aperture, 2014 (). Essay by

Czesław Miłosz Czesław Miłosz (, also , ; 30 June 1911 – 14 August 2004) was a Polish-American poet, prose writer, translator, and diplomat. Regarded as one of the great poets of the 20th century, he won the 1980 Nobel Prize in Literature. In its citation ...

. Commentary with Josef Koudelka and Robert Delpire. *''Josef Koudelka, Mission Photographique Transmanche.'' France: Différence, 1989. *''Animaux.'' France: Trois Cailloux/maison de la Culture d'Amiens, 1990. * ''Prague 1968.'' France: Centre National de la Photographie, 1990. *''Josef Koudelka: Fotografie Divadlo za branou 1965–1970.'' Czech Republic: Divadlo za Branou II, 1993. * ''Josef Koudelka. Photographs by Josef Koudelka.'' Hasselblad Center, 1993. *''Černý Trojúhelník – Podkrušnohoří : Fotografie 1990–1994'' (''The Black Triangle: The Foothills of the Ore Mountain''). Czech Republic: Vesmír, 1994. *''Photopoche: Josef Koudleka.'' France: Cnp, 1997. . *''Reconnaissance Wales.'' Cardiff, UK: Fotogallery/ National Museums and Galleries of Wales, 1998. . *''Chaos.'' France: Nathan/Delpire; UK: Phaidon Press; Italy: Federico Motta Editore, 1999. . *''Lime Stone.'' France: La Martinière, 2001. *''Josef Koudelka.'' Czech Republic: Torst, 2002. . *''Théâtre du Temps.'' France: Actes Sud. ; (''Teatro del Tempo''), Italy: Peliti Associati; Greece: Apeiron, 2003. *''L'épreuve totalitaire.'' Paris: Delpire, 2004. With an essay by Jean-Pierre Montier. *''Koudelka: Camargue.'' France: Actes Sud, 2006. . *''Koudelka.'' France: Delpire; Italy: Contrasto; New York: Aperture; UK: Thames & Hudson; Germany: Braus; Spain: Lunwerg; Czech Republic: Fototorst, 2006. *''Joseph Koudelka Photofile.'' Thames & Hudson, 2007. . *''Invasion 68: Prague.'' New York: Aperture. ; France: Tana. , 2008. *''Koudelka Piedmont.'' Contrasto, 2010. . * ''Lime.'' Paris: Xavier Barral, 2012. . * ''Wall.'' New York: Aperture, 2013. .

Awards

* 1967: Award by Union of Czechoslovakian Artists, Czechoslovakia * 1969: Robert Capa Gold Medal Award,

National Press Photographers Association The National Press Photographers Association (NPPA) is an American professional association made up of still photographers, television videographers, editors, and students in the journalism field. Founded in 1946, the organization is based in at ...

, US, for his invasion photographs; the prize is dedicated to "an unknown Czech photographer" * 1972: British Arts Council Grant to cover Kendal and Southend, UK * 1973: British Arts Council Grant to cover Gypsy life in Britain, UK * 1976:

Arts Council of Great Britain The Arts Council of Great Britain was a non-departmental public body dedicated to the promotion of the fine arts in Great Britain. It was divided in 1994 to form the Arts Council of England (now Arts Council England), the Scottish Arts Council (l ...

grant to cover life in the British Isles, UK * 1978

, France * 1980:

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

Council, US * 1987: Grand Prix National de la Photographie, French Ministry of Culture, France * 1989: Grand Prix National de la Photographie. * 1991: , France * 1992:

Hasselblad Award The Hasselblad Award (in full: Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography) is an award granted to "a photographer recognized for major achievements". History The award—and the Hasselblad Foundation—was set up from the estate ...

, Sweden * 1998: The

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is one of the world's oldest photographic societies. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as the Photographic Society of London with ...

's Centenary Medal and Honorary Fellowship (HonFRPS) in recognition of a sustained, significant contribution to the art of photography in 1998. * 2004: Cornell Capa Infinity Award, International Center of Photography, New York City * 2015: Dr. Erich Salomon Award

Exhibitions

*1961 – Divadlo Semafor, Prague *1967 – ''Josef Koudela: Cikáni – 1961–1966,'' Divadlo za branou, Prague *1968 – ''Josef Koudela: Divadelní fotografie – 1965–1968,'' Divadlo za branou, Prague *1975 – ''Josef Koudelka,''

, New York *1977 – ''Gitans: la fin du voyage,'' Galerie Delpire, Paris; Kunsthaus Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland; The Tel-Aviv Museum, Israel;

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

, London. *1978 –

, Amsterdam, Netherlands *1984 – ''Josef Koudelka,'' Hayward Gallery, London. An exhibition of the Prague invasion pictures, crediting Koudelka for the first time. *1988/89 – ''Josef Koudelka,'' Centre national de la photographie, Palais de Tokyo, Paris; International Center of Photography, New York; Akademie der Künste, Berlin; Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany; IVAM, Valencia, Spain. *1989 – ''Josef Koudelka,'' Mission Transmanche, CRP Galerie de l'Ancienne Poste, Douchy-les-Mines, France *1990 – ''Josef Koudelka z Fotografického dila 1958–1990,'' Umeleckoprumyslové museum, Prague *1994 – ''Černý trojúhelník – Podkrušnohoří : Fotografie 1990–1994'' = ''The Black Triangle : the foothills of the Ore mountains,'' Salmovsky Palac, Prague *1995/97 – ''Periplanissis: following Ulysses' Gaze,'' Mylos, Thessaloniki, Greece;

Zappeion The Zappeion ( el, Ζάππειον Μέγαρο, Záppeion Mégaro, ) is a large, palatial building next to the National Gardens of Athens in the heart of Athens, Greece. It is generally used for meetings and ceremonies, both official and privat ...

, Athens; Centre culturel Una Volta, Bastia, France; ville de Rodez, France;

Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography The is an art museum concentrating on photography. As the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, it was founded by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and is in Meguro-ku, a short walk from Ebisu station in southwest Tokyo. The museum also ...

, Tokyo; Museo di Storia della Fotografia, Fratelli Alinari, Firenze, Italy. *1998 – ''Reconnaissance: Wales,'' National Museum and Gallery of Wales, Cardiff, UK *1998 – ''From Behind the Iron Curtain,'' Lyttleton foyer,

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

, London *1999/2001 – ''Chaos,''

Palazzo delle Esposizioni The Palazzo delle Esposizioni is a neoclassical exhibition hall, cultural center and museum on Via Nazionale in Rome, Italy. History Designed by Pio Piacentini, it opened in 1883. It has housed several exhibitions (e.g. Mostra della Rivoluzi ...

, Rome; Cantieri Culturali della Zisa, Palermo, Italy; Palazzo Marino alla Scala, Milan; The Snellman Hall, Helsinki; sala de exposiciones de

Plaza de España Plaza de España (Square of Spain) may refer to: In Spain * Plaça d'Espanya, Barcelona in Barcelona * Plaça d'Espanya (Palma) in Palma, Mallorca * Plaza de España, Madrid in Madrid * Plaza de España (Pontevedra) in Pontevedra * Plaza de Es ...

, Madrid. *2002 – ''Josef Koudelka: Fotograf,'' National Gallery, Prague *2002/03 – ''Rétrospective,''

Rencontres d'Arles The Rencontres d’Arles (formerly called ''Rencontres internationales de la photographie d’Arles'') is an annual summer photography festival founded in 1970 by the Arles photographer Lucien Clergue, the writer Michel Tournier and the historia ...

, Arles, France;

Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes The Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) is a prominent cultural center in Mexico City. It has hosted notable events in music, dance, theatre, opera and literature in Mexico and has held important exhibitions of painting, sculpture and p ...

, Mexico City;

Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Monterrey (English: Museum of Contemporary Art, Monterrey), abbreviated as MARCO, is a major contemporary art museum, located in the city of Monterrey, in Nuevo León state of northeastern Mexico. MARCO organize ...

, Monterrey, Mexico. *2003 – Teatro del Tempo, Mercati di Traiano, Rome *2006 – Rencontres d'Arles, Arles, France: exhibition and laureate of the Discovery Award *2008 **Screening at Théâtre antique d'Orange, Rencontres d'Arles, Arles, France **''Prague 1968,'' Aperture Gallery, New York **''Koudelka,'' Benaki Museum, Athens **''Josef Koudelka,'' Pera Museum, İstanbul **''Invaze'' = ''Invasion,'' Old Town Hall, Prague *2010 – ''Invasion Prague 68,'' Photo Cube Market Square, Guernsey *2011 – ''Invasion 68 Prague,''

The Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography The Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography is a private exhibition organization located in the former chocolate factory and acting art cluster Red October in Moscow. Since its foundation in 2010, the center aims to explore and promote Russian an ...

, Moscow *2012 – Zingari, Fondazione Forma, Milan *2013 – ''Vestiges 1991–2012,'' Centre de la Vieille Charité, Marseilles, France *2013/2014 – ''Josef Koudelka Retrospective,'' The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo *2014/2015 – ''Josef Koudelka: Nationality Doubtful,''

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

, Chicago, Illinois;

Getty Center The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion center opened to the public on December 16, 1997 and is well known for its architecture, gardens, and views over ...

, Los Angeles; Fundacion Mapfre, Madrid *2016/2017 – "Exiles , Wall"

Netherlands Photo Museum The Netherlands Photo Museum ( nl, Nederlands Fotomuseum) (NFM) is a photography museum in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, that was founded in 1989. The museum collection consists of many historical, social and cultural images from the 20th and 21st ...

*2018 – ''Josef Koudelka: Returning,'' Museum of Decorative Arts, Prague *2019 – ''Josef Koudelka: Exiles'', Sofia City Art Gallery,

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

Collections

Koudelka's work is held in the following permanent collections: *

, Amsterdam, Netherlands

References

External links

*'
Koudelka at Magnum Photos
' *
A look at the Josef Koudelka retrospective
' at the National Gallery's Trades Fair Palace in Prague, 2003
Josef Koudelka: Contact Sheets

Interviews

*
Praga '68 – la Primavera di Koudelka
', La Domenica di Repubblica, article and interview about photographs of the Soviet invasion of Prague
Josef Koudelka in conversation with Shela Sheikh
about This Place project photographing Israel and the West Bank {{DEFAULTSORT:Koudelka, Josef 1938 births Living people Magnum photographers Czech photographers Academy of Performing Arts in Prague alumni Recipients of Medal of Merit (Czech Republic) Czech Technical University in Prague alumni Members of the Academy of Arts, Berlin