Magnum Contact Sheets
By Billy Kung
Currently on view through August 2, 2015, at Istanbul Modern’s Photography Gallery, is “Magnum - Contact Sheets,” perhaps the most intriguing show ever presented on photography. Comprised of 60 contact sheets and a video installation, the exhibition presents a total of 133 works by some of the most influential Magnum photographers—one of the most prestigious photographic agencies founded in Paris in 1947—including Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa, Elliott Erwitt, Eve Arnold, Josef Koudelka and Rene Burri, to name a few.
In the pre-digital era of photography, the contact sheet is a direct print of a roll or sequence of negatives, a record of one’s shooting. It serves as a tool for editing as well as an index to archive the negatives. However, much more than that, the contact sheet provides an intimate glimpse into the photographer’s working process, as it records each moment they capture. When viewing a contact sheet, it's as if one is accompanying the photographer and seeing the world through their eyes.
