Le Joie

Bresson's portrait of Igor Stravinsky, who was on of Bresson's favorite composers, and used his "Rite of Spring" to annoy his grandmother.

The Impassioned Eye directed by Heinz Butler is a film about photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson. He sits at a small desk with a glass of white wine, a collection of his photographs, Chopin floating in the background, and comments on the pure joy of photography and the moment of the image. There is a constant comparison between the emotion pulsing through the music and through the pictures, the unexplainable organization that one experiences when experiencing either medium. He doesn’t say much when he shows a picture, but rather lets the image speak for itself, until an outside person is introduced who comments on his photography.

He said in order for him to take a photograph there needs to be a sense of objectivity, an appreciation of the image rather than ones own bias coming through the image. I think it’s easy to find ourselves taking pictures, or looking at ones of ourselves unappreciative of ‘the’ or ‘our’ form. An image in Bresson’s eyes is much more than our own specific aesthetic view, it is our moment of coincidence when we can capture the beauty of a scene unexpectedly. Photography is the formal aspects of art mixed with the joy of the moment.

His American photography captures extremes. There are the glamorous aspects of the American culture, as well as the culture that no one talked about, we can see an insight into Marilyn Monroe as well as the poverty and racial issues in Mississippi. We see everything for what is, there is no hiding in his photographs, every face is captured exactly, perfectly, he captures the moment before the fleeting moment and finds something real, unblemished and time-stopping.

While I am unsure if Bresson would appreciate Moby being the music behind a montage of his photographs (as he played lots of Bach, Chopin and Beethoven in the film) this is still a good way to see a lot of images. My favorite is at 1:24.

Bresson traveled the world, and not taking pictures, but finding pictures, and capturing them. It is an effortless venture for him, there is no staging, but rather finding the moment, and being patient enough to wait for it. Just as a musician warms up, or a composer or writer begins to write, or a painter dabs a thick color onto the canvas, Bresson takes pictures, he captures as much as he can, as he finds joy in the moment. There is no sadness in his eyes, but this sense of the world and the beauty one can find in it if they only choose to look. He is a thinker, and a finder and a listener, and I think that is what makes him so successful, his awareness of his surroundings and is passion for being surrounded.

Here is an excerpt from another film "L'amour tout court" or "Just Plain Love," which will hopefully give you an idea of his personality, and his character and presence.