The Early Years

His combination of Modernist vision and poetic wit defined a vocabulary that generations of photographers have continued to use. Kertesz's iconic images of 1920s Paris, such as "Chez Mondrian" and "Satiric Dancer" and his later images from New York "Melancholic Tulip," "Washington Square" have seeped into contemporary culture, and yet Kertesz maintained that the real roots of his work were in Hungary. This book, the first completely dedicated to Kertesz's early Hungarian prints, offers a unique window on the origins of genius. Ninety images, selected from more than 1,000 contact prints in the artist's estate, are meticulously reproduced to actual size, revealing the explosive cultural context of early twentieth-century Hungary. A treasured addition to any photography library, Andre Kertesz: The Early Years is a rare opportunity to witness the beginnings of a great artist.