Josef Koudelka
Born in 1938 · Czechia / France
Making movement a way of seeing.
The story
Josef Koudelka photographed theatre and Roma communities before documenting the invasion of Prague in 1968. His departure from Czechoslovakia began a long period of travelling across Europe. Images of exile were followed by panoramas of transformed landscapes, industrial sites and ruins. His attention to human situations combines with a formal exploration in which spaces also bear the traces of political and historical upheaval.
Understanding the work
Compare the tight framing of early series with the panoramas. Figures, shadows and walls create relationships of scale that convey belonging, separation or changes to the land.
Key works and series
Gypsies; Invasion 68: Prague; Exiles; Chaos; Ruins.
Sources & further exploration
Works in collections.
10 recordsPhotographs to explore on museum and library websites, with titles, dates and processes. Each link opens the collection record and its image where one is available.
