Koudelka: Gypsies At first, Koudelka was attracted by the physical beauty of the Gypsies of Eastern Europe, the strangeness of their movements and their facial expression, by their clothing and ornaments; later he was attracted by their life-style. In the end he was completely absorbed by his subject.
He developed a great feeling for the Gypsies; drawn to them, he sought to learn the origin of those things which first attracted him. He worked constantly to get to know them better, in depth, in order to establish profound contacts. He devoted himself to his subject with burning intensity.
Koudelka achieves restraint and clarity, and a respect for human beings. His work reflects a long evolution of his vision from the external to the inherent and ultimate nature of his subjects. Magnum. Lavishly printed in a unique quadratone mix by artisanal printer Gerhard Steidl, it offers an expanded look at Cikáni (Czech for "gypsies" )--109 photographs of Roma society taken between 1962 and 1971 in then-Czechoslovakia (Bohemia, Moravia and Slovakia), Romania, Hungary, France and Spain. The design and edit for this volume revisits the artist's original intention for the work, and is based on a maquette originally prepared in 1968 by Koudelka and graphic designer Milan Kopriva. Koudelka intended to publish the work in Prague, but was forced to flee Czechoslovakia, landing eventually in Paris. In 1975, Robert Delpire, Aperture and Koudelka collaborated to publish Gitans, la fin du voyage (Gypsies, in the English-language edition), a selection of 60 photographs taken in various Roma settlements around East Slovakia. Gypsies includes more than 30 never-before-published images and a new text by Roma scholar and sociologist Will Guy, who also wrote the essay for the 1975 edition. Guy contributes a new, in-depth analysis of the condition of the Roma today, including the most recent upheavals in France and Europe.
Josef Koudelka (born 1938) is the recipient of the Prix Nadar, Grand Prix National de la Photographie, Grand Prix Cartier-Bresson and Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography. Major exhibitions of his work have been held at The Museum of Modern Art, New York and the International Center of Photography, New York; Hayward Gallery, London; Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art, Amsterdam; and Palais de Tokyo, Paris. In 2007, Aperture published his bestselling self-titled monograph, and in 2008 released the highly anticipated Invasion 68: Prague. Koudelka is a member of Magnum Photos and is currently based in Paris. Josef Koudelka biography and resources.
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