What connects Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa and Raymond Depardon? Talent, of course, but also the Magnum and Picto agencies. The first is a cooperative of photographers founded in 1947 between the United States and France, the second is a printing laboratory created three years later in Paris. Picto is celebrating 70 years of existence this year and as many years of collaboration with Magnum, with an exceptional exhibition at the Richard Taittinger Gallery located on the Lower East Side.
“Picto and Magnum are 70 years of partnership between two institutions in the world of photography”, summarizes Julien Alamo, manager of the New York subsidiary of Picto since its opening in 2015. “The aim is to celebrate this collaboration and also to build on Magnum’s notoriety in New York to make us better known”.
When it was created, Picto was the first and only professional laboratory in Europe and knew how to adapt its services to technical developments: color which arrived in 1963, then retouching in the mid-1970s, to finally bet on digital and service in line in the early 2000s. The exhibition, visible until December 20, reflects these different eras and styles. “We have divided the exhibition into three parts. “Yesterday” first, which brings together a collection of prints from photographers who have worked with Picto from the 1950s to the 1970s. The “Today” section which is devoted to contemporary photographers collaborating with Picto, and “Tomorrow” which presents the work of three young women photographers who work in color and with whom we collaborate for the first times”, details Julien Alamo.
Among the most striking shots in the “Yesterday” section, we find unique black and white photos of Ernesto “Che” Guevara with a cigar and a smile on his lips, taken by the Swiss René Burri in Cuba in 1963. Along this wall From photos to the end of the gallery, we arrive at the “Today” section, where a giant fresco of very dark nudes covers the entire wall. It is the work of French photographer Antoine d’Agata, 58, who documents the darker darker side of men by photographing prostitutes, drug addicts and other personal obsessions. You have to go down to the basement to admire the large format and color photos of the “Tomorrow” section. Among these, the series “California on Fire” by American Carolyn Drake deals with recent Californian disasters and depicts the landscapes a few weeks after the fires.
Initially scheduled for the start of the year, the exhibition has been postponed to the fourth quarter of 2020 due to the Covid-19 epidemic. It presents in all the work of 21 photographers on more than 120 old and modern prints. Walk-ins are possible, but the organizers invite you to reserve your place for free online before coming. “It allows us to be able to welcome the public even better, and even to give them a small personal guided tour, if possible”, explains Julien Alamo, who knows all photographers and their work inside out. Many photos presented in the exhibition are also on sale. Prices and information on site or on the Richard Taittinger Gallery website. Open Tuesday to Sunday 11am to 7pm, Monday by appointment.
