German-born Gisele Freund, who strove throughout her career to prove that photography was truly an art, died in Paris aged 71 on March 30th 2000. Born in 1908, Gisele was offered her first camera by her father, a noted Jewish collector. She then worked as a photographer in Berlin and fled Berlin in 1933 to settle in France where she befriended many intellectuals, including Jean Cocteau, André Malraux or André Breton.
After seeking refuge in 1941 in South America, notably in Argentina and in Mexico, she returned to Paris after the war to pursue her career. She notably produced the official portrait of President François Mitterrand in 1981.
Home
