Brassai

BRASSAI

I'm currently avidly reading Grace Coddington's wonderful, wonderful autobiography 'Grace: A Memoir' (you can expect a gushing review very soon dear readers) and near enough every page is adorned with an incredible list of notable figures within the fashion industry, as well as a smattering of famous celebrity faces, so reading the book has been rather like receiving a fashion education of sorts. I keep hurriedly writing down and then googling all the names Grace pulls out, and that is subsequently how I discovered the absolutely brilliant Hungarian photographer Brassai, whose work just seems perfect to write about in order to transport us away from this dull, grey Manchester day to the magic and promise of 20th century Paris.

Brassai was a famous 20th century photographer, film maker, writer and sculptor who moved to Paris in the mid 1920's to further his love of the arts and subsequent career within them, and crafted his signature name using inspiration from the town Brasso, where he grew up. Originally pursuing journalism, he later began venturing into photography, using it as a medium with which to capture his love and adoration for the beautiful city of Paris. Brassai's photography is evidently a visual ode to his adopted home, and interestingly the majority of Brassai's gorgeous black and white photography focuses on exploring the streets, people, architecture, society and atmosphere of Paris in the midnight hour, when a misty, alluring darkness has fallen only to be interrupted by a mirage of translucent and dazzling white lights. Searching through Brassai's archives are a real aesthetic pleasure, with the serene romanticism appealing so strongly to my ever yearning nostalgia. He captured an aesthetic of Paris and its people that many don't often see, and in such a way that his photographs almost intensify and mystify that beauty. There's the shifting focus and soft, gentle tones of grey, black, white set against piercing silhouettes and beads of light. I'm normally afraid of the dark, yet Brassai's work to me reminds me that there's a hidden and unique beauty to be found there, you just have to look at the world through the right perspective. His work is simply a joy, and so with that I'd love to share with you some of my favourite photographs from Brassai's incredible collection.

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-All photos belong to Brassai-