Werner Bischof. A Legacy of Colour Revealed  

What is the role of colour in photography and how has it changed over time? On the occasion of the recent rediscovery of Werner Bischof’s colour photographs, exhibited for the very first time in the show "Werner Bischof. Unseen Colour," MASI Lugano presents a conversation between Marco Bischof, son of the Swiss photographer and director of the Werner Bischof Estate, and Clara Bouveresse, lecturer at the University of Evry/Paris Saclay specialized in 20th century photography.

The focus of the conversation will be the legacy of Werner Bischof’s colour work and reportage photography has developed and changed over time.

In the 1950s, colour reportages such as those of Bischof were in fact more the exception than the rule, especially at Magnum Photos. Though Bischof was not the only member of the famous agency to work with colour, this aspect was partly concealed in Magnum’s history because colour photography - relegated to the world of advertising – was held in low regard.

This event in MASI will therefore also address the history of the use of colour, from editing tool to means of documenting reality, exploring the boundaries between artistic and reportage photography.

The conversation will be in English with simultaneous translation into Italian.