Alberto Giacometti à la Galerie Maeght, Paris, France, 1961
Gelatin silver print
35.6 x 23.9 cm (14 x 9 7/16 in.)
As he sets up, or packs up, his exhibition at Galerie Maeght in Paris, Alberto Giacometti is immortalized in a dynamic, blurry movement that echoes that of his famous sculpture Walking Man whose slender, dark silhouette stands out in the foreground.
Slightly bending, the sculptor is literally at one with his sculpture in this portrait that has become iconic. Once again, Henri Cartier-Bresson demonstrates his breathtaking talent for capturing the “decisive moment” of a situation or a portrait taken on the fly. When this picture is shot, in 1961, the photographer and his model have known each other for some 30 years, sharing a solid friendship based on mutual esteem.
Alberto Giacometti à la Galerie Maeght, Paris, France, 1961 is presented for the first time as part of the Pinault Collection in the monographic exhibition Henri Cartier-Bresson. Le Grand Jeu at Palazzo Grassi in Venice, in 2020.
