Eugène Atget

Atget took up commercial photography in the late 1880s after a few failed attempts as a painter and an actor. He made a living primarily as a documentary photographer - using his camera to record the architecture of 'Old Paris' as well as France' popular culture. Although he focused primarily on photography's ability to be a neutral recording device, some of his photographs from this earlier period reveal a more artistic endeavor. By 1920, Atget's photography had turned almost entirely toward a more suggestive and innovative approach to the medium. It is these photographs, taken from 1920 until his death, whose ability to transform the ordinary' into art earned Atget a name with the Surrealists and a place in the history of photography after his death. (ULAN 2006)