René Burri

photographer

René Burri (1933–2014) was a prominent Swiss photographer and member of the Magnum Photos agency since 1955. Trained at the Zurich School of Applied Arts, he gained international recognition for his reportage on music pedagogy for deaf children in 1955. Throughout his career, Burri documented major historical, political, and cultural events across Europe, Asia, and the Americas, including the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Long March in China. He is renowned for his empathetic portraits of figures such as Che Guevara, Maria Callas, and Alberto Giacometti. His work often balanced formal rigor with a deep humanistic commitment to capturing 'intensity' rather than mere documentation. In 2013, he established the Fondation René Burri in Lausanne to preserve his complete body of work.[1]

Themes

  • Photojournalism
  • Historical events
  • Portraiture

Books

Works by René Burri

  • Die Deutschen 1962 · Fretz & Wasmuth · book · German Also published in Paris as 'Les Allemands' in 1963.
  • Blackout New York 2009 · Moser Verlag GmbH · book · German ISBN 9783981234435 Co-authored/edited with Hans-Michael Koetzle.
  • Impossible Reminiscences 2013 · Phaidon · book · English

Exhibitions

  • 2020 Explosions of Sight Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne solo
  • 2004 René Burri: Retrospektive Maison européenne de la photographie, Paris solo

Awards

  • 1991 Ordre des Arts et des Lettres France
  • 1998 Dr Erich Salomon Prize German Photography Society
  • 2011 Swiss Press Photo Life Achievement Award Switzerland
  • 2013 Leica Hall of Fame Award Leica

References

  1. René Burri • Photographer Profile. Magnum Photos. 2024 link