JOSEF KOUDELKA

Today was a whirlwind.
I flew back to Los Angeles last night and hit the ground running early this morning
and knocked out a bunch of meetings to ring in the New Year with a full dose of productivity! One of my meetings was at the Getty Center. Every time I have meeting up there I give myself some extra time to see the current exhibits.
A perk of my profession!

But today, because I was trying to cram so much into my highly productive
"first-day-back-after-vacation" day, and because I tend to go through exhibits fairly quickly,
I only allotted myself a short time to peruse the galleries.
That turned out to be a very bad idea.

Prague, negative, 1968; print, 1990, Josef Koudelka, gelatin silver print. Image courtesy of and © Josef Koudelka/Magnum Photos

My plan was to only see the Rubens exhibit which closes soon.
But because I had some time left over before my next meeting, I decided to see what was on in the West Pavilion.
And that's when I got sucked in.

Jordan, negative, 2012; print, 2013, Josef Koudelka, inkjet print. Image courtesy of and © Josef Koudelka/Magnum Photos

I was not familiar with Josef Koudelka's work and immediately I was blown away.
And, subsequently, late for my next meeting.

Left: Bohemia, negative, 1966; print, 1967, Josef Koudelka, gelatin silver print. Image courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago, gift of the artist, 2013.1256. © Josef Koudelka/Magnum Photos. Right: Romania, negative, 1968; print, 1980s, Josef Koudelka, gelatin silver print. Image courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago, promised gift of Robin and Sandy Stuart. © Josef Koudelka/Magnum Photos

Public Service Announcement:
If you are in Los Angeles, do yourself a favor and go see this exhibit.
Do not delay. Be patient and wade through the throngs of people and spend as much times as you can.
This exhibition is beautiful.
Your eyes (all eyes) should have a chance to feast on
this amazing body of work.