Brassai (1899-1984)
Aliases:
Brassaï;
Gyula Halász
Professions:
Photographer;
Sculptor
Biography
(b.
September
9
1899,
Brassó,
Hungary;
d.
July
8
1984,
Eze,
Alpes-Maritimes,
France)
Hungarian
photographer.
Born
as
Gyula
Halász
in
Brassó,
Hungary
(now
part
of
Romania),
his
family
moved
to
Paris
when
Brassai
was
three
years
old.
Brassai
studied
painting
and
sculpture
at
the
Academy
of
Fine
Arts
in
Budapest.
He
joined
the
Austro-Hungarian
army
and
served
until
the
end
of
the
First
World
War.
In
1920
Brassai
worked
as
a
journalist
in
Berlin
while
... (view more)
(b. September 9 1899, Brassó, Hungary; d. July 8 1984, Eze, Alpes-Maritimes, France) Hungarian photographer. Born as Gyula Halász in Brassó, Hungary (now part of Romania), his family moved to Paris when Brassai was three years old. Brassai studied painting and sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Budapest. He joined the Austro-Hungarian army and served until the end of the First World War. In 1920 Brassai worked as a journalist in Berlin while studying painting at the Berlin-Charlotten Academy of Fine Art. In 1924, Brassai moved to Paris to work as a journalist; here he created his alias (meaning “from Brassó”) and began taking photographs. The combination of a job in journalism and a strong love for the city led him to wander the streets at night capturing the essence of Parisian life in his photography. “He had an extraordinary talent for photographing people in interiors lit by shocking and disruptive flash powder in a way that looks entirely spontaneous and natural.”* In 1933, Brassai published Paris de Nuit, a collection of his photographs encompassing all sides of the city, from more risqué subjects of nudity, crime and prostitution to the city’s high society; important intellectuals, ballets and grand operas. His friend Henry Miller called Brassai “the eye of Paris.” Along with photographing strangers, Brassai photographed many of his artist friends including Salvador Dalí, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse and Alberto Giacometti. After 1961, Brassai concentrated solely on sculpting in stone and bronze. The artist died in 1984, in Eze, Alpes-Maritimes in the south of France. In 2000, his widow Gilberte organized an exhibition composed of nearly 450 works at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. (*Credit: Christie’s, New York, April 11, 2008, Photographs, Lot 417)
(hide)
Examples of Brassai Sold at Auction - 838 price results currently available
View all Auction Results
Related Content on Photography — 25 artists:
Auction Houses that have sold Brassai - 52
Close
