"One of the seminal photoessays of the 20th Century, Magnum photographer Josef Koudelka's Gypsies offers an unparalleled insight into the everyday lives of Europe’s Roma communities. Carrying only his equipment, a rucksack and sleeping bag, Koudelka moved freely between different villages and encampments during the Sixties and early Seventies, sleeping outside and spending his days immersed in recording the individuals he encountered. Akin to the communities he was photographing, Koudelka’s life during this period was characterized by displacement and alienation. It was undoubtedly his affinity with these people’s way of life that both drove him to photograph them and enabled Koudelka to capture the intimacies and intricacies of their existence to such an unprecedented degree.
After taking what became his career-making photographs of the Soviet Invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, Koudelka feared for his safety and made plans to leave his homeland. Capturing the confrontation between Russian tanks and unarmed protesters in the streets of Prague, his images were smuggled out of the country and published under a pseudonym in The Sunday Times Magazine. Despite this precaution, in 1970 Koudelka fled to England to apply for political asylum and became, like many Roma in his images, effectively stateless. Indeed, both Gypsies, and his subsequent project Exiles, center around the theme of displacement, which was a defining reality of his own existence."
Source
Condition
Very Good / Dust jacket has some light shelf wear. Inside of the book in stunning condition.
Author Josef Koudelka
Title Gypsies
Type Hardcover
Publication year 1975
Edition 1st Edition, 2nd Printing
Language English
Publisher Aperture
