150 photographs by the greatest photographers on display in Rome. The Bachelot Collection at Villa Medici

TheAcademy of France in Rome - Villa Medici presents from October 7, 2022 to January 15, 2023 the exhibition Collection, curated by Sam Stourdzé. This is an exhibition that aims to celebrate Florence and Damien Bachelot’s collection of photographs.

Some 150 photographs covering a century of image history will thus be on display. From Brassaï to Sabine Weiss and from Diane Arbus to Mitch Epstein, the exhibition gives an opportunity to trace the history of photography focused onhumanity and its relationship with its environment, where the effervescence of the city goes hand in hand with the solitary poetry of the portrait.

The exhibition aims to offer a twofold look: that of collectors Florence and Damien Bachelot through twenty years of a consistent approach of acquisition that composes a personal narrative, and that of curator Sam Stourdzé through a selection of prints where the photographer’s eye acts as a seismograph of the events of history and intimate narratives. It also meanders between the two great transatlantic traditions: from early 20th century French photography called humanist toAmerican street photography. Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Doisneau and Willy Ronis then meet Dave Heath, Helen Levitt and Robert Frank.

A series of about forty vintage prints by Saul Leiter testifies, with the shift to color, to a turn toward the second half of the century and a reversal of photographic influences. The American counter-culture and the setbacks of the modernist utopia occupy the center of the image.

Finally, the exhibition explores the beginnings of modern reportage with Gilles Caron to the documentary portraits of contemporary photographers such as Luc Delahaye, Mohamed Bourouissa, Véronique Ellena, and Laura Henno. The ancient cistern of Villa Medici will host a focus on Laura Henno’s work, including photographs and films.

The exhibition on the Bachelot collection at Villa Medici highlights the history of photographic influences and examines the ways in which the portrait and the body frame the city, cut through urban territory and everyday spaces. It is nevertheless . and of a look that allows vintage and modern to be placed side by side.

The texts accompanying the exhibition from a historical and aesthetic perspective are edited by Michel Poivert, photography historian.

The following are the artists featured:

Diane Arbus, Édouard Boubat, Mohamed Bourouissa, Marcel Bovis, Brassaï, Gilles Caron, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Philippe Chancel, Stéphane Couturier, Bruce Davidson, Luc Delahaye, Robert Doisneau, Gilles Ehrmann, Véronique Ellena, Mitch Epstein, Louis Faurer, Andreas Feiniger, Robert Frank, Paul Fusco, Luigi Ghirri, Mario Giacomelli, Nan Goldin, Paul Graham, Harry Gruyaert, Dave Heath, Laura Henno, René Jacques, Ray K. Metzker, Nadav Kander, Chris Killip, François Kollar, Josef Koudelka, Dorothea Lange, Saul Leiter, Christian Lemaire, Leon Levinstein, Helen Levitt, Vivian Maier, Susan Meiselas, Joel Meyerowitz, Janine Niepce, Willy Ronis, Joy Judith Ross, Arthur S. Siegel, Eugene Smith, Mike Smith, Paul Strand, Sabine Weiss.

For info: villamedici.it

Image: Luigi Ghirri, Atelier Morandi, Grizzana (1989; Collection Bachelot). Credit Legacy of Luigi Ghirri

150 photographs by the greatest photographers on display in Rome. The Bachelot Collection at Villa Medici

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