André Kertész (1894–1985)

André Kertész was enamored of Paris from the moment he emigrated there from Hungary in 1925. In his new city, he would roam the streets, frequently choosing to frame scenes that presented a world that he was both embedded in but also at a distance from. Especially toward the end of the 1920s, Kertész came to achieve this effect often by photographing scenes from windows, many times from the stairwell of his apartment at 5, rue de Vanves, providing a bird’s eye view of the city. In Avenue de L'Opera, Kertész utilizes Modernist modalities by slightly disorienting perspective, calling attention to line, space and light, but he also expresses an emotional solitude through the sharing of his vantage point as a withdrawn observer.

This print of Avenue de L'Opera is believed to be the only early print of the image in existence.