Spring Revolutions: 1968 A Tale of Two Cities
In May and August of 1968 two very different uprisings took place on the streets of two European cities, photographed by two very different photographers.
Ian Berry arrived in Prague (under the pretence of attending an architectural conference) on the same day as the Warsaw Pact tanks rolled in and was the only foreign photographer present to capture the momentous events of that day. He stayed for a week, eventually escaping with his film hidden in the hub-caps and headlights of his rental car.
Earlier that same year the lconic Bruno Barbey, a French photographer, and like Berry a member of Magnum, was on the streets of Paris buying a brand new crash helmet in the company of Henri Cartier-Bresson, in preparation for photographing the enfolding events surrounding the Paris riots and the occupation of the Sorbonne. At its height the protests nearly brought down the government of de Gaulle and brought a halt to the fabric of society for almost a month.
BRUNO BARBEY
1968, Paris. CRS fighting people with water at the cross of Boulevards Saint Germain et Saint Michel.
Vintage gelatin silver print
9.8 x 6.7 in.
BRUNO BARBEY
May 27 1968. 13th Arrondissement, 81 Boulevard Kellerman, Paris. Meeting of workers and students at Charlety stadium.
Vintage gelatin silver print
9.8 x 7.8 in.
BRUNO BARBEY
May 1968, Paris. 6th Arrondissement. Boulevard Saint Germain. Students hurling projectiles against the police.
Vintage gelatin silver print
11.8 x 14.1 in.
BRUNO BARBEY
Night of 10 June, 1968. 14th Arrondissement, Paris. Riot on the corner of the Boulevard Pasteur & Rue de Vaugirard.
Vintage gelatin silver print
7.8 x 11.8 in.
BRUNO BARBEY
Night of May 10/11 1968. Boulevard St. Michel, Paris. Demonstration with Molotov Cocktails.
Vintage gelatin silver print
11.8 x 7.8 in.
IAN BERRY
Czechs and the Russian soldiers under the shadow of the Russian guns, Czechoslovakia, Prague, 1968
Vintage gelatin silver print
11. x 7ó in.
IAN BERRY
Czechoslovakia, Prague, 1968
Vintage gelatin silver print
11. x 7ó in.
IAN BERRY
Czechoslovakia, Prague, 1968
Vintage gelatin silver print
11. x 7ó in.
IAN BERRY
Czech anti-Russian protestor wears a neutrality placard, Czechoslovakia, Prague, 1968
Vintage gelatin silver print
6 . x 10 in.
IAN BERRY
Czechs shout abuse at Russian soldiers in Wenceslas Square, Czechoslovakia, Prague, 1968
Vintage gelatin silver print
6 . x 10 in.