During a legendary career that spanned almost six decades, Czech photographer Josef Sudek, the poet of Prague, developed a craftsmanship and technical virtuosity that was unparalleled among his contemporaries. Early in his career, though the prevailing art movements of the 1920s and 30s included cubism, surrealism, and the Czech avant-garde, Sudek sought his own approach characterized by a striking mastery of light. Copiously illustrated with photographs from the Art Gallery of Ontario--which will also exhibit the photographs through December 2012--this book takes readers on a journey through Sudeks life and work. Included here are essays by some of the foremost writers on Sudeks work, including curator Maia-Mari Sutnik, photo-historian Antonin Dufek, Canadian Art editor Richard Rhodes, and photographer Geoffrey James. Sudeks photographs also feature heavily in Irish novelist John Banvilles Prague Pictures: Portraits of a City, which forms a biographical portrait of the photographer, and several excerpts from the book are included here. Rounding out the volume is a detailed biographical chronology by Czech art historian and Sudek expert Anna Farova. The photographs in this book cover every stage of Sudeks extensive career, shedding light on his lifelong quest to perfect his photographic vision.
