David 'Chim' Seymour: Searching for the Light. 1911–1956 (Appearances – Studies in Visual Research, 4)

Review David "Chim" Seymour is one of the most celebrated photojournalists of the twentieth century. A cofounder of Magnum Photos, he covered conflicts, portrayed celebrities, and pioneered humanitarian photography while covering the plight of millions of children orphaned and abandoned after World War II. Based on archives, numerous interviews of friends and colleagues, and a comprehensive study of his contact sheets, this is the first English-language in-depth illustrated biography to appear that explores his life from his childhood in Poland to his untimely death during the 1956 War in Sinai. His friend and colleague Henri Cartier-Bresson once wrote: "Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart; his own was vulnerable." --From the Back Cover Product Description "He used his camera like a doctor would use a stethoscope in order to diagnose the state of the heart. His own was vulnerable.", Cartier-Bresson wrote about David Seymour, who liked to be called Chim. Chim is best known as one of the cofounders of photojournalism’s famous cooperative Magnum Photos. Weaving Chim’s life and work, this book discovers this empathetic photographer who has been called "The First Human Rights Photographer". In 1947, Chim was one of the four cofounders of the Magnum Photos cooperative with Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson and George Rodger. He also wrote Magnum’s 1955 bylaws, which are still in effect today. But he is the only one of those famous photographers who does not have a full biography to his name. This book examines his life and work from Poland to France to the Spanish Civil War, his work for British intelligence during World War II, his reportage on Europe’s children after the war, his reportages on Italian actors, illiteracy and religious festivals in Southern Italy, his coverage of Israel’s beginnings before his 1956 death during the Suez war. His complex itinerary is emblematic of the displacements and passages of the XXth century. From the Back Cover David "Chim" Seymour is one of the most celebrated photojournalists of the twentieth century. A cofounder of Magnum Photos, he covered conflicts, portrayed celebrities, and pioneered humanitarian photography while covering the plight of millions of children orphaned and abandoned after World War II. Based on archives, numerous interviews of friends and colleagues, and a comprehensive study of his contact sheets, this is the first English-language in-depth illustrated biography to appear that explores his life from his childhood in Poland to his untimely death during the 1956 War in Sinai. His friend and colleague Henri Cartier-Bresson once wrote: "Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart; his own was vulnerable." About the Author Carole Naggar, New York, USA.