Robert Doisneau (; 14 April 1912 – 1 April 1994) was a French photographer. From the 1930s, he photographed the streets of Paris. He was a champion of humanist photography and, with Henri Cartier-Bresson, a pioneer of photojournalism.W. Scott Haine, Culture and Customs of France (London Greenwood, 2006), p. 289
Doisneau is known for his 1950 image Le baiser de l'hôtel de ville (The Kiss by the City Hall), a photograph of a couple kissing on a busy Parisian street.
He was appointed a Chevalier (Knight) of the Legion of Honour in 1984 by then French president, François Mitterrand.
Photographic career Doisneau used irony in images of juxtapositions, mingling social classes, and eccentrics in contemporary Paris streets and cafes. He was influenced by the work of André Kertész, Eugène Atget, and Henri Cartier-Bresson.
Doisneau's work gives prominence to children's street culture; returning to the theme of children at play in the city, unfettered by parents.
Early life Doisneau's father, a plumber, died on active service in World War I, when his son was about four. His mother died when he was seven. He then was raised by an aunt. At 13, he enrolled at the École Estienne. He graduated in 1929 with diplomas in engraving and lithography and took classes in figure drawing and still life.
When he was 16, he took up amateur photography, starting by photographing cobble-stones before progressing to children and then adults.
At the end of the 1920s, Doisneau found work as a draughtsman (lettering artist) at Atelier Ullmann (Ullmann Studio), a creative pharmaceutical graphics studio. He also acted as camera assistant in the studio and then progressed to a staff photographer.
Photography in the 1930s In 1931, he left both the studio and advertising, taking a job as an assistant with the modernist photographer, André Vigneau. In 1932, he sold his first photographic story to Excelsior magazine.
Three years later, he began working as an industrial advertising photographer for the Renault car factory at Boulogne-Billancourt. Five years later, in 1939, he was dismissed due to repeated tardiness. He then freelanced in advertising, engraving, and postcard photography In 1991, he said that the years at the Renault car factory marked "the beginning of his career as a photographer and the end of his youth."
The same year, he was later hired by the Rapho photographic agency and traveled throughout France in search of picture stories, eventually taking his first professional street photographs.
War service and resistance Doisneau worked at the Rapho agency until the outbreak of World War II, where he was drafted into the French army as both a soldier and photographer. He was in the army until 1940 and, from then until the end of the war in 1945, used his draughtsmanship, lettering artistry, and engraving skills to forge passports and identification papers for the French Resistance.
Post-war photography
Some of Doisneau's most recognizable photographs were taken after the war. He returned to freelance photography and sold photographs to Life and other international magazines. He briefly joined the Alliance Photo Agency but rejoined the Rapho agency in 1946 . He remained with them throughout his working life, despite receiving an invitation from Henri Cartier-Bresson to join Magnum Photos.
He refused to photograph women whose heads had been shaved as punishment for sleeping with Germans.
In 1948, he was contracted by Vogue to work as a fashion photographer.
Le Groupe des XV was established in 1946 in Paris to promote photography as art and drawing attention to the preservation of French photographic heritage, and Doisneau joined in 1950 and participated alongside Rene-Jacques, Willy Ronis, and Pierre Jahan. After the group was disbanded, he joined Les 30 x 40, the Club Photographique de Paris.
Doisneau continued to work through the 1970s, producing children's books, advertising photography, and celebrity portraits including Alberto Giacometti, Jean Cocteau, Fernand Léger, Georges Braque, and Pablo Picasso. He also worked with writers and poets such as Blaise Cendrars and Jacques Prévert, and he credited Prevert with giving him the confidence to photograph everyday street scenes. He came to the Limousin region several times. He had a painter friend there, Jean-Joseph Sanfourche
Le Baiser de l'hôtel de ville (The Kiss) In 1950 Doisneau created his most recognizable work for Life– (Kiss by the Hôtel de Ville), a photograph of a couple kissing in the busy streets of Paris, which became an internationally recognised symbol of young love in Paris. It was published on 12 June 1950, part of a photo-essay on couples kissing in Paris. The identity of the couple was unknown until 1992.
Personal life Doisneau married Pierrette Chaumaison in 1934. The couple had two daughters, Annette (b. 1942) and Francine (b. 1947). From 1979 until his death, Annette worked as his assistant. The two sisters were models for their father from an early age, and now work together to manage his archives and legacy.
Doisneau's wife died in 1993 suffering from Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Doisneau died six months later in 1994, having had a triple heart bypass and was suffering from acute pancreatitis.
Doisneau was thought to be a shy and humble man, similar to his photography. He disagreed with his daughter, Francine, for charging an "indecent" daily fee of £2,000 for his work on a beer advertising campaign– he wanted only the rate of an "artisan photographer".
He lived in southern Paris (Gentilly, Val-de-Marne, Montrouge, and the 13th arrondissement) throughout his life. He is buried in the cemetery at Raizeux beside his wife.
Awards and commemoration
Kodak Prize, 1947 Niépce Prize, 1956 (Nicéphore Niépce) Grand Prix National de la Photographie, 1983 Balzac Prize, 1986 (Honoré de Balzac) Chevalier of the Order of the Legion of Honour, 1984. Honorary Fellowship (HonFRPS) from the Royal Photographic Society, 1991.http://www.rps.org/annual-awards/Honorary-FellowshipsAccessed 18 August 2012 The Maison de la photographie Robert Doisneau in Gentilly, Val-de-Marne, is a photography gallery named in his honour. Several Ecole Primaire (primary schools) are named after him. Ecole élémentaire Robert Doisneau is at Véretz (Indre-et-Loire).France – Education.gouv, Ecole Primaire Publique Doisneau (Robert) The Allée Robert Doisneau is named in his honour at the 'Parc de Billancourt' on the site of the old Renault factory at Boulogne-Billancourt. On 14 April 2012, Google celebrated his 100th birthday with a Google Doodle.
Publications Paris délivré par son peuple. (From the People of Paris). Paris: Braun: c.1944. La Banlieue de Paris. (The Suburbs of Paris). Text by Blaise Cendrars. Paris: Éditions Pierre Seghers, 1949. L'Enfant de Paris. (The Children of Paris). Text by Claude Roy. Neuchâtel: La Baconnière, 1951. Sortilèges de Paris. (The magic of Paris). Text by François Cali. Paris: Arthaud, 1952. Les Parisiens tels qu’ils sont. (The Parisians as they are.). Text by Robert Giraud and Michel Ragon. Paris: Delpire, 1954. Instantanés de Paris. (Snapshots of Paris). Preface by Blaise Cendrars. Paris: Arthaud, 1955. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, Compter en s’amusant. (Fun Counting). Lausanne: La Guilde du Livre, 1955. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.. Text by Arthur Gregor. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1956. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.. Text by Elsie May Harris. London: Nelson, 1962. Pour que Paris soit. (This is Paris). Text by Elsa Triolet. Paris: Éditions Cercle d’Art, 1956. Gosses de Paris. (Children of Paris). Text by Jean Dongués. Paris: Éditions Jeheber, 1956. Robert Doisneau's Paris: 148 Photographs. Text by Blaise Cendrars. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1956. Paris Parade: 148 Photographs. London: Thames & Hudson, 1956. Le ballet contre l'opéra. (The Ballet and The Opera). Souillac, Lot: Mulhouse, 1956. A.B.C. du dépannage.. N.p.: Société des pétroles Shell Berre, 1958. Bistrots. (Bistros). Text by Robert Giraud. Le Point: Revue artistique et littéraire, 57. Souillac, Lot: Mulhouse, 1960. Arabie, carrefour des siècles: Album. (Arabia, crossroads of the centuries. An album). Text by Jacques Benoist-Méchin. Lausanne: La Guilde du livre, 1961. Nicolas Schöffer.. Text by Guy Habasque and Jacques Ménétrier. Neuchâtel: Éditions du Griffon, 1962. Cognac.. Text by Georges Vial. Cognac: Rémy Martin, 1960 (?). Cognac.. Text by Louise de Vilmorin. Paris: Rémy Martin, 1962. Marius, le forestier. (Marius, the forester. The working men). Text by Dominique Halévy. Les hommes travaillent. Paris: Éditions Fernand Nathan, 1964. Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Doisneau, André Vigneau: Trois photographes français. Arles: Musée Réattu, 1965. Catalogue of an exhibition at Musée Réattu of Doisneau, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and André Vigneau. Épouvantables Épouvantails. (Appalling Scarecrows). Paris: Éditions Hors Mesure, 1965. Le Royaume d’argot. (The Kingdom of slang). Text by Robert Giraud. Paris: Denoël, 1966. Catherine la danseuse. (Catherine. the dancer). Text by Michèle Manceaux. Paris: Éditions Fernand Nathan, 1966. L'École polytechnique. (The Polytechnic). Loos-lez-Lille: L. Danel, 1967. L'Oeil objectif. (The eye is a lens). Marseille: Musée Cantini, 1968. Catalogue of an exhibition at Musée Cantini by Doisneau, Denis Brihat, Lucien Clergue, and Jean-Pierre Sudre. Le Royaume secret du milieu. (The secret of the middle kingdom). Text by Robert Giraud. Paris: Éditions Planète, 1969. My Paris. Text by Chevalier, Maurice. Macmillan Publishers. New York. 1972 Le Paris de Robert Doisneau et Max-Pol Fouchet. Les éditeurs français réunis. France. 1974 L’Enfant à la Colombe. (The Child of the Dove). Text by Sage, James. Editions of the Oak. Paris. La Loire. Denoël. Paris. 1978 Le Mal de Paris. (The Evil of Paris). Text by Lépidis, Clément. Arthaud Publications. Paris. Trois Secondes d’éternité. Contrejour. Paris. 1979 Ballade pour Violoncelle et Chambre Noir. (A Song for a Cello and a dark room). co-author: Baquet, Maurice. Herscher Editions. Paris. 1980 Robert Doisneau. Text by Chevrier, Jean-François. Belfond Editions. Paris. 1981 Passages et Galeries du 19ème Siècle. (Passages and Galleries of the 19th Century). Text by Delvaille, Bernard. Éditions Balland. Paris. 1982 Doisneau. Photopoche, Centre national de la photographie. France. 1983 Paysages, Photographies. (Landscapes). (mission photography for DATAR) Éditions Hazan. Paris. 1985 Un Certain Robert Doisneau. Editions of the Oak. Paris. 1986 Pour saluer Cendrars. (In honour of Cendrars). Text by Camilly, J. Actes Sud. Arles, France. 1987 60 portraits d/artists. (60 portraits of artists). Text by Petit, Jean. Hans Grieshaber Publications. Zürich. 1988 Doisneau. Quotations by Doisneau collected by Maisonneuve Andre. Éditions Hazan. Paris, France. 1988 Bonjour Monsieur Le Corbusier. (Hello Mr Le Corbusier). Text by Petit, Jean. Hans Grieshaber Publications. Zürich. 1988 A l’imparfait de l’objectif. (The imperfect object). Belfond Editions. Paris. 1989 Les Doigts Pleins d’encre. (Fingers full of ink). Text by Cavanna. Hoëbeke Editions. Paris. 1989 La Science de Doisneau. (The Science of Robert Doisneau). Hoëbeke Editions. Paris. 1990 Les Auvergnats. (People of the Auvergne). With Dubois, Jaques. Nathan Images. Paris. 1990 Lettres à un Aveugle sur des Photographies de Robert Doisneau. (Letters to a blind man about the Photographs of Robert Doisneau). Text by Roumette, Sylvain. 1990 Le Tout sur le tout/Le Temps qu’il fait. (All about the weather). Paris. 1990 Le Vin des rues. Text by Robert Giraud. Paris: Denoël, 1990. Rue Jacques Prévert. Hoëbeke Editions. Paris, France. 1991 La Compagnie des Zincs. Text by Carradec, François Carradec. Seghers. Paris. 1991 Les Grandes Vacances. (Summer vacation). Text by Pennac, Daniel. Hoëbeke Editions. Paris. 1992 Mes gens de Plume. Writings by Doisneau collected by Dubois, Y. Éditions La Martinière. France. 1992