Henri Cartier-Bresson and American Suburban X

In American Suburban X's blog post, written by Bruno Chalifour, photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, is hailed as the "spearhead of protagonists" in 20th century photography. The blog post, properly titled "Henry Cartier-Bresson's Last Decisive Moment", after his most famous book, The Decisive Moment, gives the reader a great understanding of Cartier-Bresson as both a person and a photographer. The way in which Cartier-Bresson captured moments of time was unlike any other, which all began in 1930s Europe.

America Suburban X gives a great summary of Cartier-Bresson's travels through Europe with his beloved Leica. In its purest essence photography gave Cartier-Bresson "a way of thinking, feeling... and way of life", which is reflected in the imagery Chalifour chose to illustrate Cartier-Bresson's body of work.

Alicante, Spain, 1932

Hyères, France, 1932

Seville, Spain, 1933

Seville, Spain, 1933

I think that this selection of images uncovers the many ways in which Cartier-Bresson captured the moments that he was lucky to stumble upon. Some more revealing than others, some more nuanced than others, and some simply more intriguing than others. However, all of these images tell a story of time, place, and feeling. 

While Cartier-Bresson achieved great fame during his life, Chalifour discusses that one of his greatest wishes was to remain unknown. Chalifour states that "if Cartier-Bresson must be remembered, it is as a co-founder in 1947 of the photographers' co-operative, Magnum, and as the author of The Decisive Moment," a mentality I fully align with. 

In sum, I think that Chalifour did an excellent job of giving us great insight into Cartier-Bresson's work, life, and way of thought. Henri Cartier-Bresson taught us how to interact with our environment, a lesson we can all carry with ourselves, whether we are taking photographs or simply observing the outside world.