Arts Visuels >> Classics >> Jacques Henri Lartigue

De De (his cousin), Diving with Water Ring, 1911

I am totally enamored with Jacques Henri Lartigue and his work.  Born in 1894, he received a camera for his seventh birthday, and from then on essentially kept a photo diary of his life.  Fascinated by the things most young boys are interested in, including cars, dogs, his family and friends at play, aircraft, many of his most famous photographs were taken during his childhood.

ZYX24 Takes Off, 1910

My Hydro-Glider with Propeller, (Self-Portrait), 1904

Zissou, 1911  (How hilarious is this image??  Have you ever seen someone look so serious (or fully dressed) while in an intertube?)

Grand Prix de Circuit de la Seine, 1912

Apparently, Wes Anderson is a big fan and has modeled many of his characters and images after Lartigue's work, including Max from Rushmore.  Also did you notice the photo of Zissou?  Bet that's where he got Steve Zissou's name!

As he continued to document his surroundings and outings for his entire life, he later took many photos of fashionable Parisian life and French vacation spots, but I'll save that era for another day.

Today, I'm loving the joie de vivre, humor, and idiosyncrasies captured in his childhood photographs.

Can you believe his technical capability at such a young age?  This was before digital made everything look good, y'all.