Seymour, David

From New World Encyclopedia
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These photographer friends he wrote about were André Friedman, later to be known as [[Robert Capa]], and [[Henri Cartier-Bresson]], the group that would found [[Magnum Photos]] more than a decade later in the United States.
 
These photographer friends he wrote about were André Friedman, later to be known as [[Robert Capa]], and [[Henri Cartier-Bresson]], the group that would found [[Magnum Photos]] more than a decade later in the United States.
  
 
+
Chim's coverage of the [[Spanish Civil War]], [[Czechoslovakia]] and other [[Europe]]an events established his reputation. In 1939 he documented the journey of Loyalist Spanish refugees to [[Mexico]] and was in New York when [[World War II]] broke out. There, he changed his name to David Seymour, although he kept the pseudonym Chim for his work.
  
 
In 1940 he enlisted in the [[United States Army]], serving in Europe as a photo interpreter during the war. He became a [[naturalized citizen]] of the [[United States]] in 1942, the same year that his parents were killed by the [[Nazism|Nazis]]. After the war, he returned to Europe to document the plight of refugee children for [[UNESCO]].
 
In 1940 he enlisted in the [[United States Army]], serving in Europe as a photo interpreter during the war. He became a [[naturalized citizen]] of the [[United States]] in 1942, the same year that his parents were killed by the [[Nazism|Nazis]]. After the war, he returned to Europe to document the plight of refugee children for [[UNESCO]].
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==Work==
 
==Work==
Chim's coverage of the [[Spanish Civil War]], [[Czechoslovakia]] and other [[Europe]]an events established his reputation. He was particularly known for his poignant treatment of people, especially children. In 1939 he documented the journey of Loyalist Spanish refugees to [[Mexico]] and was in New York when [[World War II]] broke out.  
+
Chim's career in [[photojournalism]] began in [[Paris]], with his work published in ''Paris-Soir'', a large-circulation daily newspaper in Paris, and the weekly news magazine ''Regards''. He covered events of political significance, with his work becoming published in an array of leading magazines, including ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]''. He was particularly known for his poignant treatment of people, especially children.  
  
Seymour was among the first to depict fast moving, front-line, battle action with a camera, but he had little taste for the battleground. He soon relinquished that coverage to his friend and colleague Robert Capa, who became famous as a war photographer. Seymour preferred to photograph behind the lines, documenting war’s impact on the civilian population.
+
Seymour was one of the pioneers of the fast moving, front-line, battle photograph. However, he soon relinquished that coverage to his friend and colleague [[Robert Capa]] who became famous as a war photographer, preferring to photograph war’s impact on the civilian population.<ref>Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) ''Chim:Reflections from the Heart'' [http://www.corcoran.org/exhibitions/chim/chim_about_spanish.asp The Spanish Civil War] Retrieved May 29, 2008.</ref>
  
In 1947, Chim co-founded the [[Magnum Photos]] photography cooperative, together with [[Robert Capa]] and [[Henri Cartier-Bresson]], whom he had befriended in 1930s Paris.  
+
From 1936 to 1938 he covered the [[Spanish Civil War]], and his photographs of its impact on civilians were particularly impressive, receiving widespread attention.  
  
Chim's reputation for his compelling photos of war [[orphan]]s was complemented by his later work in photographing Hollywood celebrities such as [[Sophia Loren]], [[Kirk Douglas]], [[Ingrid Bergman]], and [[Joan Collins]].
+
After serving in [[World War II]] as a photo-interpreter for the United States Army, he immigrated to the US. In 1947, Chim co-founded the [[Magnum Photos]] photography cooperative, together with [[Robert Capa]] and [[Henri Cartier-Bresson]], whom he had befriended in 1930s Paris, as well as [[George Rodger]] and [[William Vandivert]].
 +
 
 +
Chim received an assignment from [[UNESCO]] to photograph children in Europe. His sympathetic images of children who had been physically and spiritually damaged by the war proved unforgettable. They were published in 1949 in the acclaimed ''Children of Europe''. In the following years he traveled extensively in Europe and [[Israel]], his region for Magnum Photos, continuing to record images of [[social change]] and it human impact.
 +
 
 +
He recorded the emergence of the state of Israel in 1948, and the [[Suez crisis]] of 1956. It was that David Seymour was shot by [[Egypt]]ian [[machine gun]]fire while traveling to photograph a prisoner exchange four days after the [[armistice]].
 +
 
 +
Chim's reputation for his compelling photos of war [[orphan]]s was complemented by his work in photographing [[Hollywood]] celebrities such as [[Sophia Loren]], [[Kirk Douglas]], [[Ingrid Bergman]], and [[Joan Collins]]. He also produced outstanding photographic essays of [[Bernard Berenson]] and [[Arturo Toscanini]].
  
Seymour was among the first to depict fast moving, front-line, battle action with a camera, but he had little taste for the battleground. He soon relinquished that coverage to his friend and colleague Robert Capa, who became famous as a war photographer.<ref>Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) ''Chim:Reflections from the Heart'' [http://www.corcoran.org/exhibitions/chim/chim_about_spanish.asp The Spanish Civil War] Retrieved May 29, 2008.</ref>
 
  
 
"It was probably a sort of escape from the world we are living now to wander through the ancient Greece ruins and sail around the islands…one gets philosophical looking at the remnants of great civilizations…”
 
"It was probably a sort of escape from the world we are living now to wander through the ancient Greece ruins and sail around the islands…one gets philosophical looking at the remnants of great civilizations…”
Line 46: Line 51:
  
 
==Legacy==
 
==Legacy==
 +
 +
In all his work, Chim consistently showed great [[empathy]], his photos being not just technically effective but ore importantly, they capture the [[emotion]]s of his subjects. He was fluent in several languages and developed deep connections with many cultures. His work served to inform the world, moving people's hearts with compassion for those who might otherwise have remained distant.
  
 
Seymour was eulogized by his friend and colleague, photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson: “Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart. His own was vulnerable.”<ref>Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) [http://www.corcoran.org/exhibitions/chim/chim_index.asp Reflections for the Heart: Photographs by David Seymour (Chim)] Retrieved May 29, 2008.</ref>
 
Seymour was eulogized by his friend and colleague, photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson: “Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart. His own was vulnerable.”<ref>Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) [http://www.corcoran.org/exhibitions/chim/chim_index.asp Reflections for the Heart: Photographs by David Seymour (Chim)] Retrieved May 29, 2008.</ref>

Revision as of 00:05, 30 May 2008


Chim (pronounced shim) was the pseudonym of David Seymour (November 20, 1911 – November 10, 1956), an American photographer and photojournalist.

Life

David Seymour was born David Szymin in Warsaw to Polish Jewish parents, on November 20, 1911. David had an excellent education, attending the Jewish Gymnasium Ascolah and the Adademie der Graphischen un Buch Küenste (Academy of Graphic and Book Arts) in Leipzig, Germany, where he studied color printing techniques.

Graduating in 1932, he left Germany, where the Nazis were gaining power, returning to Poland where he found economic problems and fascism on the rise. He decided to move to Paris, France, planning to study science at the Sorbonne. To support himself, he borrowed a camera from a friend and began his career in photography. This friend was David Rappaport, who owned the pioneer picture agency Rap, which provided photographs to publishers of books and magazines.

Becoming a freelance journalist in 1933, David began using the name "Chim," a phonetic spelling of his otherwise difficult family name. At that time David wrote to his girlfriend, Emma, in Warsaw:

Today it is one year since I came to Paris—an important anniversary that puts me in a mood for reflection and memories. As you know, I am not any more working at reproduction (lithography). I am a reporter, or more exactly, a photo-reporter... My stories appeared lately in Paris Soir (about the Metro.) Regards will publish my two big stories. Basically I am satisfied with myself, because I am working well. I know what I want at this moment and I am making progress in that direction. But I want to do something bigger. Then, socially, I am moving in new circles, away from the Polish gang. I am more among photographers, thinking people, interested in the same problems as myself. We are trying to organize some kind of association of revolutionary-minded people.[1]

These photographer friends he wrote about were André Friedman, later to be known as Robert Capa, and Henri Cartier-Bresson, the group that would found Magnum Photos more than a decade later in the United States.

Chim's coverage of the Spanish Civil War, Czechoslovakia and other European events established his reputation. In 1939 he documented the journey of Loyalist Spanish refugees to Mexico and was in New York when World War II broke out. There, he changed his name to David Seymour, although he kept the pseudonym Chim for his work.

In 1940 he enlisted in the United States Army, serving in Europe as a photo interpreter during the war. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1942, the same year that his parents were killed by the Nazis. After the war, he returned to Europe to document the plight of refugee children for UNESCO.

Sometime after D-Day, Chim met Life (magazine)'s Paris Bureau Head Will Lang Jr. and had lunch with him at a cafe' in the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France. Alongside with him that day was reporter Dida Comacho and photographer Yale Joel.

(L-R) Will Lang Jr., Dida Comacho, David "Chim" Seymour, Louise Lang, and Yale Joel at a cafe' in the Bois de Boulogne

.

After Capa's death in 1954, Chim became president of Magnum Photos. He held the post until November 10, 1956, when he was killed (together with French photographer Jean Roy) by Egyptian machine-gun fire, while covering the armistice of the 1956 Suez War.

Work

Chim's career in photojournalism began in Paris, with his work published in Paris-Soir, a large-circulation daily newspaper in Paris, and the weekly news magazine Regards. He covered events of political significance, with his work becoming published in an array of leading magazines, including Life. He was particularly known for his poignant treatment of people, especially children.

Seymour was one of the pioneers of the fast moving, front-line, battle photograph. However, he soon relinquished that coverage to his friend and colleague Robert Capa who became famous as a war photographer, preferring to photograph war’s impact on the civilian population.[2]

From 1936 to 1938 he covered the Spanish Civil War, and his photographs of its impact on civilians were particularly impressive, receiving widespread attention.

After serving in World War II as a photo-interpreter for the United States Army, he immigrated to the US. In 1947, Chim co-founded the Magnum Photos photography cooperative, together with Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson, whom he had befriended in 1930s Paris, as well as George Rodger and William Vandivert.

Chim received an assignment from UNESCO to photograph children in Europe. His sympathetic images of children who had been physically and spiritually damaged by the war proved unforgettable. They were published in 1949 in the acclaimed Children of Europe. In the following years he traveled extensively in Europe and Israel, his region for Magnum Photos, continuing to record images of social change and it human impact.

He recorded the emergence of the state of Israel in 1948, and the Suez crisis of 1956. It was that David Seymour was shot by Egyptian machine gunfire while traveling to photograph a prisoner exchange four days after the armistice.

Chim's reputation for his compelling photos of war orphans was complemented by his work in photographing Hollywood celebrities such as Sophia Loren, Kirk Douglas, Ingrid Bergman, and Joan Collins. He also produced outstanding photographic essays of Bernard Berenson and Arturo Toscanini.


"It was probably a sort of escape from the world we are living now to wander through the ancient Greece ruins and sail around the islands…one gets philosophical looking at the remnants of great civilizations…”

Many of Seymour’s later photographs of Greece seem to reflect the photographer’s playful musings about the nature of the people and the landscape. These images reflect a strong kinship with the work of his friend Cartier-Bresson.[3]

"He didn't surprise them, he didn't photograph them from a distance or over their shoulders...," Shneiderman says. "He made a close, personal and emotional relationship."[4]

Legacy

In all his work, Chim consistently showed great empathy, his photos being not just technically effective but ore importantly, they capture the emotions of his subjects. He was fluent in several languages and developed deep connections with many cultures. His work served to inform the world, moving people's hearts with compassion for those who might otherwise have remained distant.

Seymour was eulogized by his friend and colleague, photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson: “Chim picked up his camera the way a doctor takes his stethoscope out of his bag, applying his diagnosis to the condition of the heart. His own was vulnerable.”[5]

Publications

  • Seymour, David. 1949. Children of Europe. UNESCO
  • Seymour, David. 1950. The Vatican: Behind the Scenes in the Holy City. Grosset & Dunlap.
  • Seymour, David. 1957. Little Ones. Japan: Heibonsha.
  • Seymour, David. 1966. David Seymour-"Chim". Paragraphic Books.
  • Seymour, David. 1999. Closeenough: Photography by David Seymour (Chim). Art Gallery, University of Maryland. ISBN 978-0937123386

Notes

  1. David Seymour and Inge Bondi, Chim: The Photographs of David Seymour (Bulfinch Press, 1996, ISBN 978-0821222294)
  2. Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) Chim:Reflections from the Heart The Spanish Civil War Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  3. Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) Chim:Reflections from the Heart Greece Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  4. Susan Stamberg David Seymour's 'Reflections from the Heart' Morning Edition, NPR, March 23, 2006. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  5. Corcoran Gallery of Art (2008) Reflections for the Heart: Photographs by David Seymour (Chim) Retrieved May 29, 2008.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Beck, Tom. 2006. David Seymour (Chim). Phaidon Press. ISBN 978-0714842769
  • Capa, Cornell. 1974. David Seymour. Penguin. ISBN 978-0670258321
  • Miller, Russell. 1999. Magnum: Fifty Years at the Front Line of History: The Story of the Legendary Photo Agency. Grove Press. ISBN 978-0802136534
  • Seymour, David and Inge Bondi. 1996. Chim: The Photographs of David Seymour. Bulfinch Press. ISBN 978-0821222294

External links

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