BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1932.

HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON /
MAGNUM PHOTOS

DECISIVE MOMENTS HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON

AT ATENEUM ART MUSEUM

23.10.201531.1.2016
1

CONTENTS:

HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON, PHOTOGRAPHS. BACKGROUND INFORMATION.

WELCOME TO ATENEUM!

3
POINTERS 120, IN THE CLASSROOM OR IN THE MUSEUM.

PAGE 2

5
I STARTERS: PREPARE FOR THE VISIT IN THE CLASSROOM.

PRACTICAL INSTRUCTIONS

ASSIGNMENT 8: A PICTURE OF A NATURAL PERSON.

III DESSERT: AFTER THE MUSEUM VISIT

ASSIGNMENT 7: CHILDREN IN THE PAST AND TODAY.

ASSIGNMENT 6: FRAMING THE PICTURE.

ASSIGNMENT 5: DO WE SEE THE SAME PICTURE?

II MAIN COURSE: THE MUSEUM VISIT

ASSIGNMENT 4: THE JOURNALISTIC IMAGE

THE DECISIVE MOMENT AND PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER SAMI KERO &

PERSONAL EXHIBITION.

ASSIGNMENT 3: #RATKAISEVAHETKI (=DECISIVE MOMENT)

AND CURRENT MEDIA PHOTOGRAPHS.

ASSIGNMENT 2: CARTIER-BRESSONS PHOTOGRAPHS

ASSIGNMENT 1: WHAT IS A PHOTOGRAPH?

10

12

12

WELCOME TO ATENEUM!

This education package has been prepared

for you who come with a group to the Henri
Cartier-Bresson exhibition in the Ateneum Art
Museum. The package consists of background
information, 20 assignments with clues, and 8
other assignments. We have prepared the package particularly with primary level 6th graders in
mind, but it can also be adapted for other grade
groups and even for adults.
Henri Cartier-Bresson (19082004) was
one of the worlds most famous photographers.
He photographed people and events all over
the globe for six decades. This extensive retrospective exhibition is on the 2nd floor of the
museum.
You will get most of your museum visit if
you study the pictures of Cartier-Bresson and
these assignments beforehand. Some of the assignments can also be completed during the museum visit or afterwards in class. Sixth-graders
in comprehensive schools in Helsinki can visit
the exhibition and attend an introduction to the
exhibition free of charge. This is made possible
by cooperation with Helsingin Sanomat and the
City of Helsinki Education Department.

of 20th century history, from the horrors of

the Spanish Civil War to the liberation of concentration camp prisoners in World War II.
Cartier-Bresson was in China when Mao
Tse-tung marched into Beijing (Peking). He
photographed Mahatma Gandhi in India only
a few hours before Gandhi was assassinated.
His photographs have moulded the image of
world history for several generations.
Photography was for Henri Cartier-Bresson
a tool for telling stories about life, to capture
on film important, surprising and decisive
moments. The key to photography for him was
perfect and exact timing. The photographer

had to be constantly on the alert. The camera

was for Cartier-Bresson like a sketchbook in
which he recorded fleeting moments fast and
spontaneously. The development of communications technology facilitated the dissemination
and influence of news images.
Cartier-Bressons exhibition contains nearly
300 photographs spanning the artists entire
long career. It is organised in cooperation
with Magnum Photos and Fondation HCB.

HENRI
CARTIER-BRESSON
PHOTOGRAPHS,
BACKGROUND
INFORMATION
The programme of autumn 2015 at Ateneum Art
Museum features a superstar from France. Henri
Cartier-Bresson (19082004), who has also been
called the father of photojournalism, was one
of the most important photographers of the last
century and a founder of the Magnum Photos
photo agency.
Henri Cartier-Bresson witnessed and captured in photographs many of the turning points

THE SECRET OF
THE DECISIVE MOMENT
Henri Cartier-Bresson only took black-and-white
photographs. He used a 35mm Leica with a
50mm lens. The camera was quite small, which
allowed the photographer to move easily among
people. Cartier-Bresson did not want to disturb
his subjects with a flash, nor did he crop his
pictures afterwards. He had a solid feel for composition and great sensitivity to situations. The
concept of the decisive moment is associated
specifically with Cartier-Bressons work. He often
took dozens of photographs of a subject and with
a keen eye selected the one to be published.
Today, in the age of the digital image, snapshots
are part of everyday life we can remove failed
shots from the camera instantly. In CartierBressons day, each picture was exposed on film
and could only be viewed after the film was
developed.

Making a photograph means recognising, all at once and

in a fraction of a second, an event and the exact organisation
of the visually perceived forms that express and signify that
event. It means aligning the head, the eye and the heart
along the same line of sight. Its a way of living.
Henri Cartier-Bresson

PLACE DE LEUROPE, GARE SAINT LAZARE,

PARIS, FRANCE, 1932.
HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON / MAGNUM PHOTOS

PICTURE MATERIAL,
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
There is a great deal of visual material on Henri
Cartier-Bresson as well as information in English
that can be used in the classroom. Two online
sources in particular should be mentioned:
 The website of Fondation
Henri Cartier-Bresson:
www.henricartierbresson.org
 The website of Magnum Photos,
the photo agency Cartier-Bresson
co-founded with colleagues in 1947:
www.magnumphotos.com
For school groups, we also recommend the
Pimi, darkroom exhibition at the Finnish
Museum of Photography, which is open until
31 January 2016. The experiential exhibition appeals to the senses and serves as an introduction
to the world of the photographs under the guidance of professional and amateur photographers.

POINTERS 120, IN THE

CLASSROOM OR IN THE MUSEUM
Select one picture for study, either from this
package, from online material, or from the exhibition. Use the picture to discuss some of the
following questions:

1.
2.
3.
4.

5.

6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.

What thing in the picture caught your attention first? Why do you think it is that way?
What is going on in the picture?
What do you think might have happened
before the picture was taken? What might
happen after the picture was taken?
If you had to give a title to the picture,
what would it be? Find out the title that the
photographer himself gave to the picture:
what does it tell you?
Look at the persons in the picture: What can
you tell about them by looking at their face,
expression, gestures, pose or clothes? What
do you think they could be thinking at the
moment the picture was taken?
What is the status of the people from bygone
ages in the picture? How can you tell?
Can you tell where and when the
picture was taken? Give your reasons.
Recent history: How is the change in
everyday places, fashion and lifestyle
visible in the pictures?
What does it mean to pose for a picture?
What is beautiful
(and the opposite: what is ugly)?
What is everyday life?
How is it visible in the pictures?
Can photography make the world a better
place? How?
How is a photograph affected by being blackand-white? Does a black-and-white photograph contain more tonalities than a colour
photo (contrasts between light and dark,

light and shadow), or do you think it is dull

and grey? Is it possible for a black-and-white
picture to be joyful, funny and colourful?
14. Is there something in the picture that reminds
you of your own life? Can you see something
familiar in it?
15. Camera angles: How are the objects and the
people positioned in the picture? Are they
shown directly from the front, or from a low
or a high angle?
16. How is the picture framed how has the
photographer positioned the subject inside
the picture? What do you think there can be
beyond the frames of the picture?
17. How has the photographer used lights and
shadows how do they affect the mood of
the picture?
18. Was the picture taken for some particular
purpose propaganda, advertising, lobbying,
something else?
19. Does the picture tell something about the
photographer? Does it tell you something
about the photographers attitude or opinions?
Can you tell whether the picture shows:
a) how things really are,
b) how the photographer saw
the situation, or
c) how the photographer
would like things to be?
20. In the Ateneum:
What does it feel like to be in a museum?

#RATKAISEVAHETKI
(=DECISIVE MOMENT)
PERSONAL EXHIBITION

ASSIGNMENT 3:

Place: At school, in small groups. You will need

lots of newspapers and possibly also netzines.
Aim: To learn about Henri Cartier-Bressons
photographs and present-day news images, and
to analyse them.
Activity: First study Cartier-Bressons pictures at the website www.henricartierbresson.
org. Then study Finnish newspapers and their
photographs in small groups. Select one or two
articles or news stories that carry a photograph.
What does the photograph tell us? How has it
been used? What information are we told about
it? How is the picture linked to the text? What
is similar in the newspaper picture and the
photographs of Henri Cartier-Bresson?

CARTIER-BRESSONS
PHOTOGRAPHS AND
CONTEMPORARY MEDIA
PHOTOGRAPHS.

ASSIGNMENT 2:

I STARTERS: PREPARE FOR THE VISIT IN THE CLASSROOM

ASSIGNMENT 1:

WHAT IS A PHOTOGRAPH?

Place: School.
Aim: To discuss the questions of what a photograph is, how it shows the world, what is true
and what is interpretation. Why have people
taken photos in the past? Why are they taking
photos now?
Activity: Ask each student to bring to class
one photograph that is important to them personally. The picture can be one that they have
taken themselves, a family photo, a passport
photo, a picture cut out from a magazine, downloaded from the Internet, or a postcard. Ask students to consider the following themes (this can
be done individually or in pairs, and be discussed
later in a group or as a text assignment). You can
also bring to the classroom examples of different
types of pictures beforehand.
Is a photograph always true? What is the
connection between photograph and reality?
Is a photograph a copy of life always accurate
and truthful? Can a photograph lie?
How do we classify photographs? Consider
the purpose of different types of photographs
(class photo, family photo, passport photo, instagram, advertising photo, photoportrait). How
can you tell which type of photograph you are
looking at?
How can we tell a news photo from an advertising photo? What are the differences?

Place: At and around school. Cameras are needed and a way to print the pictures.
Aim: To encourage students to take snapshots and observe their surroundings. To prepare

students for the museum visit and give them a

hands-on feel for the thematics of snapshot
photography.
Activity: Take snapshots at or around the
school about some thing or situation that you
find interesting and that involves one or more
persons. Remember to make sure that you have
permission from the people to photograph them.
Print the photos and use them to create a small
exhibition together. Find a place in school or
nearby where you can put the pictures on
display.
Discuss to find a suitable theme, title and
hanging for the exhibition. Do you want the
exhibition to have texts as well (consider what
would be a suitable font size and how the text
should be placed relative to the pictures), and do
you want to have an opening ceremony (whom
would you invite, what do you want to tell them
about the pictures when they come to the opening or during the exhibition)? Also discuss, what
is an art exhibition and what it takes to organise
one.
Hint: You can share your snapshots via
the Ateneum Instagram page #ratkaisevahetki
(=decisive moment), where we are collecting
decisive moments of Finnish photographers
under the hashtag #ratkaisevahetki

THE DECISIVE MOMENT AND

PRESS PHOTOGRAPHER SAMI KERO

A GOOD PRESS PHOTO

HAS BOTH INFORMATION
AND FEELING
Photojournalist Sami Kero has worked as a
photographer for the Helsingin Sanomat daily
since 2005. Although most of his work takes
place in Finland, he has also travelled on photo
assignments to several crisis areas around the
world. We asked him to describe an ordinary day
in the life of a press photographer, and also what
makes a photograph a good picture journalistically. During the interview, Kero also gives a few
pointers for taking candid photographs.
Can you describe your
ordinary working day?
When Im in Finland, I work three shifts in the
paper, morning, day and night. Before going to
work, I check the assignment list for shooting
gigs. I usually have two or even up to four gigs
per day.
A shooting gig can be anything. The basic assignment gives me a date, place, topic and angle.
Sometimes the instructions are clear and precise,
sometimes they just hang in the air. For example,
if the topic is online job searching, I might take
a picture of someone at a computer, looking for

site, there might be some sort of an event, and

then the news story is created on the spot.
I try to wrap all this up in a single picture
that relates to the story or the person, a photo
that joins together the text and the picture. I
often edit and upload the photos while still on
assignment, sometimes even directly from the
camera. I always send in a few alternative shots.

HELSINGIN SANOMAT 18.7.2015. PHOTOGRAPH BY SAMI KERO.

work online. Or if the news story is about congestion on the railways, I would want to have a
train and lots of people in the picture.
The most common assignment is a portrait,
taking a picture of an expert or some other person associated with a news story. I often accompany the reporter and listen to them doing the
interview. Quite often something happens on

One basic rule is to take pictures from different

distances, both near and far as well as vertical
and horizontal. That makes it easier for the
newsroom editors to create an interesting
and balanced layout.
What about when you are working abroad?
You have worked in many crisis areas
around the world, documenting
earthquakes and wars.
Its different when you work abroad. You can
be sent out to a crisis area at just a few hours
notice. Thats what happened to me after the
earthquakes in Haiti and Japan.
There are lots of things on international
assignments that you must attend to: theres
travelling and waiting, and access to locations
can be really difficult. But in principle the work
itself is the same as here in Finland: you take
photos of people and their life, you show and tell
what is happening. My own opinions or worldview matter very little. However, when you work
in a crisis situation, you must make sure that by
taking photographs and publishing them you
are not making the peoples situation any worse.
There are also cultural differences. In Afghanistan, for example, taking photos of women is a
very delicate matter, particularly for a male
photographer.
Sometimes you can barely manage to take a
single photo in some disaster area, for example.
Thats why it can seem ridiculous to me when

academics speculate endlessly about why the

photographer took precisely that kind of a
picture.
How do you find your
own decisive moment?
How does one take a
good candid photograph?
Since I specialise in press photography, I always
try to create a situation or an event in the photo.
When Im taking a picture of a person, I may
ask them to do something that they are familiar
with, like their work.
For instance, consider the press photograph
included in this package: because we were making a story about guest marinas, the photo would
have to include a harbour, a boat and Thomas,
the German boater interviewed by the journalist.
Those were the basic elements. I was just wrapping up, when I noticed a dog in the next boat
and decided to wait. A moment later Thomas
returned to his boat, and I kind of stole this
picture.
Often the subject of a good photograph is not
thinking that someone is taking their photo, they
are focused on what they do. The most popular
press photos have a furry animal in them, something up in the air, or a person in a funny pose.
This picture has two of those elements.
A good press photo contains new information
and also some surprising element that makes the
viewer see the world from a slightly different an-

gle. Observation, message and idea, those are the

three basic elements of a good picture. I believe
that when the photographer is open-minded and
interested, that comes across in the photograph.
A good press photo contains information as well
as feeling, the photographer must put both their
heart and mind into it. That is also what makes
this work so challenging. A press photograph can
be about a single moment or a situation, something unique. It can also have great light, great
colours or exciting contrasts, pitting something
very small against something very large, such
a tank against a person. A photograph can also
contain hints of other visual cultures, such as
the movies or fine art.
Photographs can contain different levels of
storytelling. Sometimes I have hidden details
in my pictures that some viewers notice and
can understand. The basic message remains the
same, but it gains one additional reading.

Henri Cartier-Bresson did not crop

his pictures once he had taken them.
What do you think about editing
photographs?

For me, the file that you get from the camera is
not taboo in the sense that you shouldnt touch it
at all. Sometimes I straighten a picture that came
out tilted because the shooting situation was so
hectic. But you can neither add or delete anything in a press photo afterwards readers must
be able to trust that the picture conveys things

truthfully. However, the camera is never perfect,

it too makes mistakes. It can distort shapes so
that you have to make some minor corrections.
Although the technology has developed continuously, no Japanese engineer has been able to
invent a camera that would record reality as it is.
We always need humans to make the necessary
corrections. What comes out of the camera is not
absolute truth.
Henri Cartier-Bresson is one of the
most famous press photographers in
the world. How do you see his legacy?
First of all, the way Cartier-Bresson composed
his pictures remains a starting point for practically all amateur photographers. He has a very
strong position in the history of photography.
And taking photographs in the way that he did
is a fine way to learn photography.
Before Cartier-Bressons time, news photographs were staged, they were taken with large,
clumsy cameras and often with a flash. New,
smaller cameras with greater lens speed enabled
a more factual photojournalism in which the situation is not manipulated by the photographer.
Finally, would you have any hints
for students on how to take a
good candid photo?
If your subject is a person, take your time and
wait for the right moment. The likelihood of

getting a good photo increases if the person is

doing something. Take photos from different
distances, you can start by being very close.
Always remember what I consider the most
important thing in photography: if you are
interested and excited yourself in the shooting
situation, that will show up in the result!
Link to Helsingin Sanomat website where
Sami Kero tells about taking a photograph
in a crisis area abroad (in Finnish):
http://www.hs.fi/kulttuuri/a1415594594576

ASSIGNMENT 4:

A GOOD PRESS
OR CANDID PHOTO

Place: At school, prior to the museum visit.

You will need newspapers.
Aim: To encourage students to think about
the impacts and meaning of pictures in the
media. To give students a close-up idea of media
images.
Activity: Browse the newspapers in small
groups, looking specifically at how photographs
are used in the stories. Then read the interview
with Sami Kero (you may also watch his interview from the link) and answer the following
questions in a group:

M^Wj_iW]eeZfh[iiehc[Z_Wf^ejeb_a[5
M^Wji^ekbZoekjWa[_djeWYYekdjm^[d
taking a photograph of people?
9edYbkZ[XoZ_iYkii_d]_dYbWii$

10

Place: In the museum or at school. Discussion

in pairs.
Aim: Investigative learning: to observe
framing and its effects and develop the students
analytical visual literacy skills. The aim is for
students to understand that every photograph
is the result of choices.
Activity: Working in pairs, select either the
picture on the next page, or if you are in the exhibition, a photograph that interests you both.
Discuss the effect of framing in the picture. Why
do you think the photographer has framed the
picture in just this way? How does the composition affect the mood of the picture? What do
you think the photographer has left outside the
frame? Finally, present the picture and your
conclusions to the rest of the group.

FRAMING THE PICTURE

ASSIGNMENT 6.

Discuss: What is it in the selected photograph

that gives rise to the thoughts or feelings mentioned above? Let the discussion be free: do not
try to find a correct interpretation, but encourage each other to discover different thoughts
and ideas. You might find out how enriching it
is when different people see pictures in their
own way.
Discussion back in the classroom:
What thoughts and discussions did the
pictures inspire?

II MAIN COURSE: THE MUSEUM VISIT

ASSIGNMENT 5.

DO WE SEE THE
SAME PICTURE?

Place: In Ateneum Art Museum at the Henri

Cartier-Bresson exhibition. In small groups or
pairs.
Aim: To study the photographs of Henri
Cartier-Bresson, to learn how to observe more
carefully, to develop critical thinking and interaction, and to consider cultural differences in
different times. To encourage students to form
their own opinion and teach them to realise that
we can all see one and the same picture in our
own way. To encourage students to find a link
between the pictures and their own life.
Activity: Together with the group, select one
picture in each gallery, and then discuss it. You
can use the following pointers as selection criteria (the teacher can deal out the questions to
the group):
 7f_Yjkh[j^WjYedjW_diiec[j^_d]\Wc_b_Wh"
such as an event, a place, a person or
an emotion.
 7f_Yjkh[j^WjYedjW_diiec[j^_d]coij[h_eki$
 7f_Yjkh[j^WjoekdZX[Wkj_\kb$
What makes the picture beautiful?
What kind of beauty is it?
 7f_Yjkh[j^Wj_iWddeo_d]$
 7f_Yjkh[j^Wjfb[Wi[ij^[ceij$
 7f_Yjkh[j^Wji^emiWmehbZj^Wjde
longer exists. How can you tell?
 7f_Yjkh[j^WjZ[f_YjiWZ_[h[djWdZ
strange time, place and life.

ASSIGNMENT 7.

CHILDREN IN THE
PAST AND TODAY

Place: As a group assignment either a) at school, or

b) first in the exhibition and later in the classroom.
Involves storycrafting and picture making.
Aim: Discussing the change in the role of children, improving the skills of interactive storytelling, listening to other peoples views, and accepting
them.
Materials: Pen and paper or a computer for
writing the story, materials and tools for creating
pictures in the follow-up assignment.
Activity: Look at Cartier-Bressons pictures of
children in the Ateneum or online at school. What
do the pictures tell us about the children at work
and leisure? Select one photo. At first, calm the
situation by having everyone look at the picture in
silence for a few moments. Then use storycrafting
to create a story about one of the children in the
photograph. Select one student to serve as a clerk to
write down the story. Start the storycrafting by having one student begin: Once upon a time One
student at a time, everyone in the group adds one
line to the story, and these are written down verbatim. Keep looking at the picture. When the story is
finished, the clerk reads it aloud and everyone can
alter their own line if they wish.
Follow-up assignment, at school: The jointly
crafted story is read aloud once more, and everyone
makes a picture inspired by it. Finish the assignment by looking together at all the new pictures.

HYRES, FRANCE, 1932. HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON / MAGNUM PHOTOS

11

(such as a basic emotion: hate, love, happiness,

surprise or fear) and then its opposite.
To conclude, talk about the assignment and
compare the pictures.

III DESSERT: AFTER THE MUSEUM VISIT

You can revisit the themes of the exhibition after
your visit to the museum. Study the pictures of
Cartier-Bresson in the classroom using the online resources of Fondation HCB and Magnum
Photos mentioned above.
PRACTICAL INSTRUCTIONS

http://www.ateneum.fi/en/schools

Please read also instructions for school groups:

You can tour the museum with your group

by yourself, although we always recommend
booking a tour with one of Ateneums expert
guides. There are tours of the exhibition, and
also introductions of the exhibition in the
Ateneum Auditorium. More information on
the Ateneum website.

WELCOME TO ATENEUM!

ASSIGNMENT 8.

A PICTURE OF A
NATURAL PERSON

Place: At school. In small groups, conclusion

with the whole class.
Aim: Discuss the process of taking a photoportrait, the sitters and the photographers
role, and the genuineness of the situation.
Materials: Mobile phone cameras or regular
digital cameras. A computer and video projector
for looking at the pictures together.
Activity: Study Cartier-Bressons photographs on the websites mentioned above. What
do you think about the people in the pictures?
Are they trying to show off or are they being
themselves? Observe the faces and expressions
in particular. What do they tell you?
Take pictures of one another while posing as
little as you can. Think about what a natural person looks like, someone who does not try to look
different in a photograph. Is there such a thing as
a neutral expression? How can the photographer
earn the sitters trust? You can rehearse portrait
taking by first putting on an intense expression

Texts and editing:

Ateneum public programmes/Satu Itkonen.
Photos: Pages 1, 4 and 11 Henri Cartier-Bresson
Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos
Page 7 Helsingin Sanomat 18.7.2015,
photo: Sami Kero.
Translation FinnishEnglish: Tomi Snellman,
FinnishSwedish: Barbara Cederqvist.
Graphic design: Osmo Leppl / St.MIR

Ateneum Art Museum /

Finnish National Gallery 2015.

Ateneum Art Museum /

Finnish National Gallery
Kaivokatu 2, 00100 Helsinki
tel. +358 (0)294 500401,

ainfo@ateneum.fi
www.ateneum.fi

Open
Tue and Fri 1018,
Wed and Thu 1020,
Sat and Sun 1017.

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PHOTOGRAPHIC ART