André Kertész

The lesson: notice the shapes before you notice the subject. Kertész arrived in Paris in 1925 speaking no French and made plain scenes into quiet arrangements of line, shadow and reflection, often with a light Leica that let him blend in. Start with Meudon (1928), where a train and a lone walker move in different directions through one ordinary street, then The Fork, where strong light makes a kitchen utensil look sculpted. He shows that a corner with good light can hold a whole picture, no crowd required. Cartier-Bresson said that each time Kertész's shutter clicked, he could feel his heart beating.