Josef Koudelka - Work

Work

Koudelka's early work significantly shaped his later photography, and its emphasis on social and cultural rituals as well as death. He soon moved on to a more personal, in depth photographic study of the Gypsies of Slovakia, and later Romania. This work was exhibited in Prague in 1967. Throughout his career, Koudelka has been praised for his ability to capture the presence of the human spirit amidst dark landscapes. Desolation, waste, departure, despair and alienation are common themes in his work. His characters sometimes seem to come out of fairytales. Still, some see hope within his work — the endurance of human endeavor, in spite of its fragility. His later work focuses on the landscape removed of human subjects.

Read more about this topic:  Josef Koudelka

Famous quotes containing the word work:

    Gratefully accepting the proffered honor, [to inscribe a new legal work to him] I give the leave, begging only that the inscription may be in modest terms, not representing me as a man of great learning, or a very extraordinary one in any respect.
    Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)

    Honorable Senators: My sincerest thanks I offer you. Conserve the firm foundations of our institutions. Do your work with the spirit of a soldier in the public service. Be loyal to the Commonwealth and to yourselves and be brief; above all be brief.
    Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)

    Sleep, beloved, such a sleep
    As did that wild Tristram know
    When, the potion’s work being done,
    Roe could run or doe could leap
    Under oak and beechen bough,
    Roe could leap or doe could run....
    William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)