Wall

by Josef Koudelka

Josef Koudelka's "Wall" comprises panoramic landscape photographs made from 2008-2012 in East Jerusalem, Hebron, Ramallah, Bethlehem and in various Israeli settlements along the route of the barrier separating Israel and Palestine. Whereas Israel calls it the "security fence," Palestinians call it the "apartheid wall," and groups like Human Rights Watch use the term "separation barrier," Koudelka's project is metaphorical in nature--focused on the wall as a human fissure in the natural landscape. Sometimes blocks of concrete define the panoramas; at other times displaced olive trees--a lifeline for one man, collateral damage in another's claim for territory--subtly emerge. As in his "Black Triangle" project, made in the Bohemian foothills of the Ore Mountains in the early 1990s, "Wall" conveys the fraught relationships between man and nature and between closely related cultures. A chronology, lexicon and captions provide context for the photographs. The book is designed by Xavier Barral, working closely with Koudelka. "Wall" is part of a larger project, "This Place," initiated by photographer Frederic Brenner. "This Place" explores Israel as place and metaphor through the eyes of 12 acclaimed photographers, who were invited to look beyond dominant political narratives and to explore the complexity of the place--not to judge, but to question and to reveal.
In 1968, Josef Koudelka (born 1938) photographed the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia, publishing these images under the initials P.P. (Prague Photographer). Koudelka left Czechoslovakia in 1970, became stateless, was then granted political asylum in England, and shortly thereafter joined Magnum Photos. Prior to "Wall," Koudelka published ten books of photographs focusing on the relationship between contemporary man and the landscape, including "Gypsies" (1975), "Exiles" (1988), "Black Triangle" (1994) and "Invasion 68: Prague" (2008). Significant exhibitions of his work have been held at The Museum of Modern Art, New York and the International Center of Photography, New York. In 2012, Koudelka was named Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture.

Genres: Photography, Art

120 pages, Paperback

First published October 31, 2013

About the author

Josef Koudelka was born in Czechoslovakia in 1938. He began his career as an aeronautical engineer, and started photographing gypsies in his spare time in 1962, before turning full-time to photography in the late 1960s. In 1968 Koudelka photographed the Soviet invasion of Prague, publishing his photographs under the initials P.P. (Prague photographer). In 1969, he was anonymously awarded the Overseas Press Club’s Robert Capa Gold Medal for the photographs. Koudelka left Czechoslovakia seeking political asylum in 1970, and shortly thereafter he joined Magnum Photos.

In 1975 his first book, Gypsies, was published by Aperture, and subsequent titles include Exiles (1988), Chaos (1999), Invasion 68: Prague (2008), and Wall (2013) and, most recently Ruines (2020). Koudelka has won major awards, such as the Prix Nadar (1978), Grand Prix National de la Photographie (1989), Grand Prix 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; Hayward Gallery, London; Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art, Amsterdam; Palais de Tokyo, Paris; Art Institute of Chicago; and Museum of Decorative Arts and the National Gallery, Prague. In 2012, he was named Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture and Communication. He is currently based in Paris and Prague.

Reviews

[Sil Azevedo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating photographic essay by a master of the craft. Through the lens of his large and heavy panoramic Fuji’s, the old master captures elegant frames of an abnormality: a massive concrete wall that runs through a vast portion of a small land separating two peoples who live and work side by side. Even though Koudelka does not write about his opinions, the way he feels about the wall is clear: it’s a monstrosity, a fantastic one at that. The detailed captions provide context that further enhances this reality. I was breath taken when I first saw this book several years ago and still am every time I pull it out of the shelf to re-examine the 30 inch long spreads captured in stark black and white film. A masterpiece.

[el · Rating 5 out of 5]

An ugly wall beautifully photographed