René Burri (1933 – 2014) was a Swiss photographer. He was a member of Magnum Photos and photographed major political, historical and cultural events and key figures of the second half of the 20th century. He made portraits of Che Guevara, Pablo Picasso, and Le Corbusier as well as iconic pictures of São Paulo and Brasília.
Burri studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule Zürich from 1949 to 1953, where he worked under Hans Finsler, Alfred Willimann and Johannes Itten. From 1953 to 1955 he began working as a documentary filmmaker while completing military service. During this time he also began working with Leica cameras. Then he worked for Disney as a cameraman until 1955. From 1956 to 1959 he traveled extensively to places including Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Brazil, and Japan, which led to publications in Life, Look, Stern, Paris-Match, Réalités, Epoca, and New York Times.
Burri first began working with Magnum Photos in 1955, becoming a full member in 1959 and being elected chair of Magnum France in 1982. His first report "Touch of Music for the Deaf" on deaf-mute children was published by Life. In 1965 he assisted with the creation of Magnum Films which led to his work on the Magnum-BBC joint production of, The Two Faces of China. In 1967 he produced a documentary on the Six-Day War in Jerusalem for German television. He produced the film Jean Tinguely in 1972.
In 1963 Burri was working in Cuba when he was able to photograph the revolutionary Che Guevara; these images of Guevara smoking a cigar have become iconic. Notably, after taking the photos, Burri remembers Guevara "scaring the hell out of him". Describing a situation where an angry Che was pacing his tiny office like "a caged tiger", while being interviewed by an American woman from Look. While "hectoring" the reporter and "chomping on his cigar", Che suddenly looked Burri straight in the eye and told him "if I catch up with your friend Andy, I'll cut his throat" (while slowly drawing his finger across his neck). Andy was Andrew St. George, a fellow Magnum photographer, who had traveled with Che in the Sierra Maestra and then later filed reports for American intelligence.
© 2019. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by René Burri or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only
Burri studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule Zürich from 1949 to 1953, where he worked under Hans Finsler, Alfred Willimann and Johannes Itten. From 1953 to 1955 he began working as a documentary filmmaker while completing military service. During this time he also began working with Leica cameras. Then he worked for Disney as a cameraman until 1955. From 1956 to 1959 he traveled extensively to places including Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Brazil, and Japan, which led to publications in Life, Look, Stern, Paris-Match, Réalités, Epoca, and New York Times.
Burri first began working with Magnum Photos in 1955, becoming a full member in 1959 and being elected chair of Magnum France in 1982. His first report "Touch of Music for the Deaf" on deaf-mute children was published by Life. In 1965 he assisted with the creation of Magnum Films which led to his work on the Magnum-BBC joint production of, The Two Faces of China. In 1967 he produced a documentary on the Six-Day War in Jerusalem for German television. He produced the film Jean Tinguely in 1972.
In 1963 Burri was working in Cuba when he was able to photograph the revolutionary Che Guevara; these images of Guevara smoking a cigar have become iconic. Notably, after taking the photos, Burri remembers Guevara "scaring the hell out of him". Describing a situation where an angry Che was pacing his tiny office like "a caged tiger", while being interviewed by an American woman from Look. While "hectoring" the reporter and "chomping on his cigar", Che suddenly looked Burri straight in the eye and told him "if I catch up with your friend Andy, I'll cut his throat" (while slowly drawing his finger across his neck). Andy was Andrew St. George, a fellow Magnum photographer, who had traveled with Che in the Sierra Maestra and then later filed reports for American intelligence.
© 2019. All content on this blog is protected by international copyright laws All images are copyrighted © by René Burri or assignee. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, the use of any image from this site is prohibited unless prior written permission is obtained. All images used for illustrative purposes only
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| 1955, Inauguration of the chapel of Notre-Dame du Haut |
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| 1956, Le Corbusier in his apartment |
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| 1956, Le Corbusier paintings |
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| 1956, Le Corbusier's drawings |
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| 1957, Villa "La Californie", Spanish painter Pablo Picasso |
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| 1958, Copacabana beach, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1958, Ipanema beach, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1958, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1958, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1958, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1958, from Rio de Janeiro series |
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| 1959, Le Corbusier going over design plan |
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| 1959, Le Corbusier Unité d'habitation |
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| 1959, Lunapark Berlin from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1959, Man with a young boy from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1959, The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1960, Le Corbusier apartment |
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| 1960, Le Corbusier at his penthouse flat |
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| 1960, Student ball from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1962, Art school from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1962, Old main railway station from "Les Allemands" series |
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| 1963, Chaplin Theater from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1963, Ernesto Guevara from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1963, In the old quarters of Havana from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1963, The Malecon, Havana from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1971, Chicago |
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| 1976, Pool and House, San Cristobal, Mexico |
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| 1977, Brazil woman watching a parade, Rio de Janeiro |
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| 1978, Apollo rocket disused launching platform 28B |
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| 1978, Former launching zone Cape Canaveral |
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| 1978, New York, Central Park West |
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| 1978, Space ruins |
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| 1978, Space ruins |
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| 1978, Space shuttle Columbia launching platform |
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| 1984, Pinar Del Rio province from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1986, Trinity site Alamogordo, New Mexico |
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| 1986, Trinity site. Epicenter on the explosion of the first atomic bomb |
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| 1987, Two men on a motorbike from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1989, China. Beijing |
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| 1992, Los Alamos National lab |
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| 1992, Tourist visit the site of the first atomic bomb explosion |
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| 1992, White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico |
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| 1993, Boy and girl on a bicycle from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| 1993, Street disco along the Malecon from "Cuba Y Cuba" Series |
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| Actors taking a break |
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