Company type | Cooperative |
---|---|
Industry | Photography |
Founded | 1947 |
Founder | Robert Capa, David "Chim" Seymour, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger, William Vandivert, Rita Vandivert, Maria Eisner |
Headquarters | New York City, Paris, London, Tokyo |
Area served | Worldwide |
Products | Photojournalism, stock photography |
Website | www |
Magnum Photos is an international photographic cooperative owned by its photographer-members, with offices in Paris, New York City, London and Tokyo. It was founded in 1947 in Paris by photographers Robert Capa, David "Chim" Seymour, Maria Eisner, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger, William Vandivert, and Rita Vandivert. Its photographers retain all copyrights to their own work.
In 2010, MSD Capital acquired a collection of nearly 200,000 original press prints of images taken by Magnum photographers, which in 2013 it donated to the Harry Ransom Center.
Magnum was founded in Paris in 1947 by Robert Capa, David "Chim" Seymour, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger and William Vandivert (all photographers), Rita Vandivert and Maria Eisner, based on an idea of Capa's. (Seymour, Cartier-Bresson and Rodger were all absent from the meeting at which it was founded. [1] In response to a letter telling him that he was a member, Rodger wrote that Magnum seemed a good idea but, "It all sounded too halcyon to be true," when Capa had told him of it and, "I rather dismissed the whole thing from my mind". [2] )
Rita Vandivert was the first President, and head of the New York office; Maria Eisner the head of the Paris office. [3] The plan was for Rodger to cover Africa and the Middle East; Cartier-Bresson to cover south and east Asia; Seymour and William Vandivert to cover Europe and the United States, respectively; and Capa to be free to follow his curiosity and events. [3]
Magnum is one of the first photographic cooperatives, owned and administered entirely by members. The staff serve a support role for the photographers, who retain all copyrights to the photographs they take.
The Magnum cooperative has included photojournalists from across the world, who have covered many historical events of the 20th century. The cooperative's archive includes photographs depicting family life, drugs, religion, war, poverty, famine, crime, government and celebrities.
Although it has been asserted that the name "Magnum" was chosen because the founding members always drank a bottle of champagne during the first meetings, [4] Russell Miller writes:
It was . . . presumably agreed by those present [at the first meeting] that Magnum was a fine new name for such a bold new venture, indicative as it was of greatness in its literal Latin translation, toughness in its gun connotation and celebration in its champagne mode. [5]
Magnum is owned by its photographers, who act as shareholders. Each full member of Magnum has a vote in proposals made at a meeting held once a year, called the Annual General Meeting (AGM). [6] [7] Photographers with the status of contributor or correspondent are represented by Magnum but have no voting rights. Full members can choose to become contributors after 23 years of membership; this status gives them increased liberty to work outside Magnum, at the cost of their voting rights. [8]
In the early years of Magnum, membership had generally come about by the personal invitation of Robert Capa. However, in 1955 a three-stage membership system was set up that continues to this day [9] and is described below. Until 1953 there were also a large number of stringers who used Magnum but were not members. [10]
Magnum's photographers meet once a year, during the last weekend in June, in New York City, Paris or London, to discuss the cooperative's business. One day of the meeting is reserved to review potential new members' portfolios and vote on admitting individuals. An approved applicant is invited to become a 'Nominee Member' of Magnum, a category of membership that provides a chance for members and the individual to get to know each other, but that includes no binding commitments on either side.
After two years of Nominee membership, a photographer may present another portfolio if wanting to apply for 'Associate Membership'. If successful, the photographer is bound by the rules of the agency, and enjoys its facilities and worldwide representation. The difference between an Associate Member and a full Member is that an Associate is not a Director of the Company and does not have voting rights in the corporate decision-making. After two more years, an Associate wanting to be considered for full membership presents another portfolio of work for consideration by the members. Once elected as a full member, the individual is a member of Magnum for life or for as long as the photographer chooses.
Magnum Photos' digital archive constitutes more than 1 million images, that Magnum licenses through its website. [11] In August 2020, the Magnum website was taken offline after issues were raised by the Fstoppers photography website and amplified on social media by others including Jörg Colberg. Given the tags on the photos, there was concern that Magnum was making available photographs of children featuring nudity; that documented encounters that constituted a record of acts of child sexual abuse; and that were problematic[ clarification needed ] in terms of the way they had been labelled for searching. [12] [11] "Much of the criticism [. . .] has focused on a series of photographs by the US photographer David Alan Harvey from his time documenting sex workers in Bangkok in 1989." [13] In a statement Magnum said it will re-examine the content of its archive, and has since made its website available again but without Harvey's Bangkok series. [11] [14] Harvey was later suspended for a year following a formal investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against him. [15]
In February 2010, Magnum announced that Michael Dell's venture capital firm MSD Capital had acquired a collection of nearly 200,000 original press prints of images taken by Magnum photographers. It had formed a partnership with the Harry Ransom Center at The University of Texas at Austin to preserve, catalog, and make photographs available to the general public. [16] [17] [18] In September 2013 it was announced MSD Capital donated the collection to the Ransom Center. [19] A preliminary inventory is available for researchers who wish to use the collection. [20]
The Graduate Photographers Award was established in 2015. [21]
Name | Nationality | Status | Active years | Note |
---|---|---|---|---|
Abbas Attar | Iran | Deceased | 1981–2018 [22] | Nominee from 1981; Full Member from 1985 [22] [23] |
William Keo | France | Withdrawn | ||
Antoine d'Agata | France | Active (full Member) | 2004– | |
Khalik Allah | United States | Withdrawn | ||
Christopher Anderson | United States | Withdrawn | ||
Ansel Adams | United States | Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956 [24] – | |
Eve Arnold | United States | Deceased | 1951–2012 | Associate Member from 1951; [25] Member from 1957 [26] First female Member. |
Olivia Arthur | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 2008– | Nominee from 2008, associate from 2011, and full member from 2013. [27] [28] |
Micha Bar-Am | Israel | Active (Correspondent) | 1968– | Correspondent from 1968 [29] |
Bruno Barbey | France [30] | Deceased | 1964– [31] 2020 [32] | Member from 1968. [31] |
Jonas Bendiksen | Norway | Active (full Member) | 2004– | Nominee from 2004; Member from 2008 [33] |
Ian Berry | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 1967 [24] – | Member from 1962. [34] |
Werner Bischof | Switzerland | Deceased | 1948–1954 | Associate member from 1948, full member from 1949 [35] : 454 [36] |
Matt Black | United States | Active (Full member) [7] | 2015– [37] | |
Brian Brake | New Zealand | Withdrawn | 1957–1966 [24] | Deceased |
Michael Christopher Brown | United States | Withdrawn | 2013–2017 [38] [39] [40] | |
René Burri | Switzerland | Deceased | 1955 [24] –2014 | Associate Member from 1955; Member from 1959 [41] |
Enri Canaj | Albania | Active (Associate) [7] | 2017– | |
Cornell Capa | Hungary / United States | Deceased | 1954–2008 | Member from 1954; [42] Brother of Robert |
Robert Capa | Hungary / United States | Deceased | 1947–1954 | Founding member |
Henri Cartier-Bresson | France | Deceased | 1947–2004 | Founding member; Contributor from 1966 [24] |
Chien-Chi Chang | Taiwan | Active (full Member) | 1995– [43] | Member from 2001 [43] |
Bruce Davidson | United States | Active (Contributor) | 1956– [44] | Member from 1959 [44] |
Carl de Keyzer | Belgium | Active (full Member) | 1990– [45] | Member from 1994 [45] |
Cristina de Middel | Spain | Active (full Member) [7] | 2017– | |
Luc Delahaye | France | Withdrawn | 1994–2004 | |
Raymond Depardon | France | Active (Contributor) | 1978– | Associate Member from 1978; Member from 1979 [46] |
Bieke Depoorter | Belgium | Active (full Member) | 2012– [47] | |
Carolyn Drake | United States | Active (Full member) | 2015– [37] | |
Thomas Dworzak | Germany | Active (full Member) | 2000– | Nominee from 2000; member from 2004 [48] |
Nikos Economopoulos | Greece | Active (full Member) | 1990– | Member from 1994 [49] |
Elliott Erwitt | France / United States | Deceased | 1953–2023 [50] | Member from 1954 [50] |
Martine Franck | Belgium | Deceased | 1980–2012 [51] | Member from 1983 [51] |
Stuart Franklin | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 1985– [52] | Member from 1990. [52] |
Leonard Freed | United States | Deceased | 1956 [53] –2006 | Member from 1972 [53] |
Gisèle Freund | France | Deceased | 1947–1954 [54] | |
Paul Fusco | United States | Deceased | 1974–2020 | Member from 1974 |
Cristina García Rodero | Spain | Active (full Member) | 2005– [55] | Member from 2009 [55] |
Jean Gaumy | France | Active (full Member) | 1977– [56] | Member from 1986 [56] |
Bruce Gilden | United States | Active (full Member) | 1998– [57] | Member from 2002 [57] |
Burt Glinn | United States | Deceased | 1951 [58] –2008 | Associate Member from 1951; [25] Member from 1954 [58] |
Mark Godfrey | United States | Withdrawn | 1974–1981 [24] | |
Jim Goldberg | United States | Active (full Member) | 2002– [59] | Member from 2006 [59] |
Philip Jones Griffiths | United Kingdom | Deceased | 1966–2008 | Associate Member from 1966; Member from 1971 [60] |
Harry Gruyaert | Belgium | Active (Contributor) | 1981– [61] | Member from 1986 [61] |
Ara Güler | Turkey | Deceased | ||
Ernst Haas | Austria | Deceased | 1950 [24] –1986 | Contributor from 1966 [24] |
Gregory Halpern | United States | Active (full Member) | 2018– | Nominee from 2018 [62] |
Philippe Halsman | Russia (Latvia) / United States | Deceased | 1951 [63] –1979 | Contributing member from 1956 [63] |
Hiroshi Hamaya | Japan | Deceased | 1960–1999 | Associate Member from 1960 [64] |
Charles Harbutt | United States | Withdrawn | 1964–1981 [24] | |
Erich Hartmann | Germany / United States | Deceased | 1951 [24] [65] –1999 | Member from 1952 [65] |
David Alan Harvey | United States | Was full Member but suspended then resigned | 1993–2020 [24] [66] [15] | Member from 1997. [66] Harvey received a one-year suspension in 2020 following sexual misconduct allegations. [15] Magnum voted to remove him as a member and he resigned in 2021 before the board had their final meeting regarding the matter. [67] |
Nanna Heitmann | Germany/Russia | Active (full Member) | 2019– | Nominee from 2019 |
Bob Henriques | United States | Deceased [68] | 1957–1961 (circa) | |
Tim Hetherington | United Kingdom | Deceased | 2011 | Posthumous acceptance; Hetherington was preparing to apply to Magnum at the time of his death. [69] |
Abigail Heyman | United States | Deceased | 1970s; | |
Thomas Hoepker | Germany | Active (full Member) | 1964–2024 [70] | Member from 1989; president 2003–2006. [70] |
Sohrab Hura | India | Active (full member) [7] | 2014– | Nominee member from 2014; [71] Associate member from 2018; [72] full member from 2020 [73] |
David Hurn | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 1965– [74] | Associate Member from 1965; [75] Member from 1967 [74] |
Richard Kalvar | United States | Active (full Member) | 1975 [24] – | Associate Member from 1975; Member from 1977. [76] |
Sakir Khader | Netherlands / Palestine | Active (Nominee) | 2024– | Nominee since 2024. [77] |
Josef Koudelka | Czech Republic | Active (Contributor) | 1971 [24] – | Associate Member from 1971; Member from 1974. [78] |
Kent Klich | Sweden | Withdrawn | 1998–2002 | |
Hiroji Kubota | Japan | Active (full Member) | 1971– | Associate Member from 1971; [79] Member from 1989. [80] |
Dorothea Lange | United States | Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956 [24] – | |
Sergio Larraín | Chile | Deceased | 1959–2012 | Associate Member from 1959; Member from 1961; Contributor from 1970 [81] |
Russell Lee | United States | Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956 [24] – | |
Guy Le Querrec | France | Active (full Member) | 1976– [82] | Member from 1977. [82] |
Erich Lessing | Austria | Deceased | 1950– [83] 2018 | Member from 1955; [84] later Contributor [83] until his death in 2018 |
Herbert List | Germany | Deceased | Contributor 1951–1975 [85] | |
Paul Lowe [86] | United Kingdom | Withdrawn | ||
Danny Lyon | United States | Withdrawn | 1966–1968 [24] | |
Alex Majoli | Italy | Active (full Member) | 1996– [87] | Member from 2001. [87] |
Constantine Manos | United States | Active (contributor) | 1963 [24] – [88] | Member from 1965. [88] |
Mary Ellen Mark | United States | Deceased | 1977–1981 [24] | |
Diana Markosian | Armenia | Withdrawn | 2016–2019 | Nominee Member from 2016 [89] |
Peter Marlow | United Kingdom | Deceased [90] | 1986–2016 | Member from 1986 [91] to his death in 2016. |
Fred Mayer | Switzerland | Withdrawn | 1967 [92] – 2009 | |
Don McCullin | United Kingdom | Withdrawn | 1968–1969 [24] | |
Steve McCurry | United States | Active (Contributor) | 1986– | Member from 1986. [93] |
Susan Meiselas | United States | Active (full Member) | 1976– [94] | Member from 1980. [94] |
Lorenzo Meloni | Italy | Active (full Member) | 2015– [37] | Nominee from 2015; [37] Associate member from 2018 [95] |
Rafał Milach | Poland | Active (full Member) | 2018– | Nominee from 2018 [62] |
Wayne F. Miller | United States | Deceased | Nonmember correspondent 1956 [24] –1958; member 1958 [24] –2013 | Member from 1958, later a contributor. [96] |
Inge Morath | Austria | Deceased | 1953 [97] –2002 | Member from 1955. [97] |
Richard Mosse | Ireland | Withdrawn | 2015– [37] | |
James Nachtwey | United States | Withdrawn | 1986–2001 | |
Dominic Nahr | Switzerland | Withdrawn | 2010–2015 | |
Emin Özmen | Turkey | Active (full Member) | 2017– | |
Trent Parke | Australia | Active (full Member) | 2002– [98] | Member from 2007. [98] |
Suzy Parker | United States | Deceased | According to John G. Morris, "Capa showed model Suzy Parker how to take pictures, and for a while she was listed as a Magnum photographer". [99] | |
Martin Parr | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 1988– [100] | Member from 1994. [100] |
Paolo Pellegrin | Italy | Active (full Member) | 2001– [101] | Nominee from 2001; Member from 2005. [101] |
Gilles Peress | France | Active (Contributor) | 1970– [102] | As of 2010, a Contributor. [102] |
Gueorgui Pinkhassov | Russia | Active (Contributor) | 1986– [103] | Member from 1994. [103] |
Mark Power | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 2002– [104] | Member from 2007. [104] |
Raghu Rai | India | Active (Contributor) | 1977– | |
Eli Reed | United States | Active (full Member) | 1983– | |
Lua Ribeira | Spain | Active (full Member) | 2018– | Nominee from 2018 [62] |
Marc Riboud | France | Deceased | 1955 [24] –2016 | |
Eugene Richards | United States | Withdrawn | 1983– | |
Miguel Rio Branco | Brazil | Active (Correspondent) | 1978– | Associate Member from 1980 [105] [106] |
George Rodger | United Kingdom | Deceased | 1947–1995 | Founding member; Contributor from 1970 [24] |
Sebastião Salgado | Brazil | Withdrawn | 1979–1994 | |
Moises Saman | Spain | Active (full member) [107] | 2010– | Nominee member from 2010; full member from 2014 |
Alessandra Sanguinetti | United States / Argentina | Active (full Member) | 2007– | |
Lise Sarfati | France | Withdrawn | 1997– | |
Ferdinando Scianna | Italy | Active (Contributor) [108] | 1982– | Member from 1989 [109] |
Jérôme Sessini | France | Active (full Member) | 2012– [110] | |
David Seymour | Poland, France, United States | Deceased | 1947–1956 | Founding member |
Marilyn Silverstone | United States / Nepal | Deceased | 1964– | Associate Member from 1964, Full Member from 1967, Contributor from 1975 [111] |
W. Eugene Smith | United States | Withdrawn [112] | 1957 [24] –1958 [113] | Deceased |
Lindokuhle Sobekwa | South Africa | Active (Associate) | 2018– | Nominee from 2018 [62] |
Jacob Aue Sobol | Denmark | Active (full Member) | 2007– | |
Alec Soth | United States | Active (full Member) | 2004– | Nominee from 2004; Member from 2008 [114] |
Chris Steele-Perkins | United Kingdom | Active (full Member) | 1979– | Nominee from 1979; Associate Member from 1981; Member from 1983 [115] |
Dennis Stock | United States | Deceased | 1951–2009 | Associate Member from 1951; Member from 1957 [116] |
Matt Stuart | United Kingdom | Withdrawn | 2016–2018 | Nominee Member from 2016 [89] |
Mikhael Subotzky | South Africa | Active (Full member) | 2007– | |
Krijn Taconis | Netherlands | Withdrawn | 1954 [24] –1960 [24] | Deceased |
Newsha Tavakolian | Iran | Active (Full member) [7] | 2015– [37] | |
Nicolas Tikhomiroff | Russia / France | Withdrawn | 1959–2016 | Deceased |
Larry Towell | Canada | Active (full Member) | 1988– | |
Ilkka Uimonen | Finland | Withdrawn | 2002– | |
Burk Uzzle | United States | Withdrawn | 1967–1983 [117] | 1979–1980 President [117] |
Peter van Agtmael | United States | Active (Full Member) | 2008– | Nominee from 2008, associate from 2011, and full member from 2013. [27] [28] |
William Vandivert | United States | Deceased | 1947 [118] –1948 [119] | Founding member |
John Vink | Belgium | Withdrawn | 1993–2007 [120] | Member from 1997 [121] |
Alex Webb | United States | Active (full Member) | 1976– | |
Simon Wheatley | Singapore | Withdrawn | 2005–2011 | |
Donovan Wylie | United Kingdom | Withdrawn | 1992–2017 | Member from 1997 [122] |
Sim Chi Yin | Singapore | Withdrawn | 2018– | Nominee from 2018 [62] |
Patrick Zachmann | France | Active (full Member) | 1985– |
Robert Capa was a Hungarian-American war photographer and photojournalist. He is considered by some to be the greatest combat and adventure photographer in history.
Ingeborg Hermine "Inge" Morath was an Austrian photographer. In 1953, she joined the Magnum Photos Agency, founded by top photographers in Paris, and became a full photographer with the agency in 1955. Morath was the third wife of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Arthur Miller; their daughter is screenwriter/director Rebecca Miller.
Photojournalism is journalism that uses images to tell a news story. It usually only refers to still images, but can also refer to video used in broadcast journalism. Photojournalism is distinguished from other close branches of photography by having a rigid ethical framework which demands an honest and impartial approach that tells a story in strictly journalistic terms. Photojournalists contribute to the news media, and help communities connect with one other. They must be well-informed and knowledgeable, and are able to deliver news in a creative manner that is both informative and entertaining.
Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French artist and humanist photographer considered a master of candid photography, and an early user of 35mm film. He pioneered the genre of street photography, and viewed photography as capturing a decisive moment.
David Seymour, or Chim, was a Polish photographer and photojournalist.
Josef Koudelka is a Czech-French photographer. He is a member of Magnum Photos and has won awards such as the Prix Nadar (1978), a Grand Prix National de la Photographie (1989), a Grand Prix Henri Cartier-Bresson (1991), and the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography (1992). Exhibitions of his work have been held at the Museum of Modern Art and the International Center of Photography, New York; the Hayward Gallery, London; the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam; and the Palais de Tokyo, Paris.
Elliott Erwitt was a French-born American advertising and documentary photographer known for his black and white candid photos of ironic and absurd situations within everyday settings. He was a member of Magnum Photos from 1953.
Werner Bischof was a Swiss photographer and photojournalist. He became a full member of Magnum Photos in 1949, the first new photographer to join its original founders. Bischof's book Japan (1954) was awarded the Prix Nadar in 1955.
Martine Franck was a British-Belgian documentary and portrait photographer. She was a member of Magnum Photos for over 32 years. Franck was the second wife of Henri Cartier-Bresson and co-founder and president of the Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation.
Maria Eisner was an Italian-American photographer, photo editor and photo agent. She was one of the founders of Magnum Photos, and the first head of its Paris office.
Larry Towell is a Canadian photographer, poet, and oral historian. Towell is known for his photographs of sites of political conflict in the Ukraine, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Standing Rock and Afghanistan, among others. In 1988, Towell became the first Canadian member of Magnum Photos.
Leonard Freed was an American documentary photojournalist and longtime Magnum Photos member.
Bruce Gilden is an American street photographer. He is best known for his candid close-up photographs of people on the streets of New York City, using a flashgun. He has had various books of his work published, has received the European Publishers Award for Photography and is a Guggenheim Fellow. Gilden has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1998. He was born in Brooklyn, New York.
Trent Parke is an Australian photographer. He is the husband of Narelle Autio, with whom he often collaborates. He has created a number of photography books; won numerous national and international awards including four World Press Photo awards; and his photographs are held in numerous public and private collections. He is a member of Magnum Photos.
John Paul Fusco was an American photojournalist. Fusco is known in particular for his photographs of Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train, the 1966 Delano Grape strike and the human toll of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Fusco began his career as a photographer for Look magazine, and was a member of Magnum Photos from 1973 until his death in 2020.
Alex Webb is a photographer who makes vibrant and complex color photographs. He has been a member of Magnum Photos since 1979.
Olivia Arthur is a British documentary photographer, based in London. She is a member of the Magnum Photos agency and has produced the books Jeddah Diary (2012) and Stranger (2015).
Harry Gruyaert is a Belgian photographer known for his images of India, Morocco and Egypt as well as of the west of Ireland and for his use of colour. He is a member of Magnum Photos. His work has been published in a number of books, been exhibited widely and won the Kodak Prize.
Carolyn Drake is an American photographer based in Vallejo, California. She works on long term photo-based projects seeking to interrogate dominant historical narratives and imagine alternatives to them. Her work explores community and the interactions within it, as well as the barriers and connections between people, between places and between ways of perceiving. her practice has embraced collaboration, and through this, collage, drawing, sewing, text, and found images have been integrated into her work. She is interested in collapsing the traditional divide between author and subject, the real and the imaginary, challenging entrenched binaries.
William Vandivert was an American photographer, co-founder in 1947 of the agency Magnum Photos.
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