Dimensions: 24.2 x 18.2 x 0.7 cm
Pages: 18
This is an antiquarian book and has minor yellowing and marks on the cover and on some pages. Please, review the pictures before buying.
This portfolio was produced in a print run of one thousand copies, of which seven hundred copies feature a German accompanying text and a poem by Albert Ehrismann, numbered from 1 to 700, and three hundred copies feature an English accompanying text, numbered from 701 to 1000.
René Groebli’s 1949 photo essay Magie der Schiene (Rail Magic) is not a reportage; it is an attempt to depict an inner experience, which testifies to the artist’s early affinity with subjective photography. Photographed in and around Paris, as well as during a journey on a steam engine from Basel to Paris, the images capture Groebli's fascination with the dynamic forces of the trains – the steam, noise, and motion – transforming these elements into a deeply emotional experience. His work stands in stark contrast to the objective documentation promoted by Neue Sachlichkeit; instead, it emphasizes personal expression and the intensity of movement. With this approach, Groebli was clearly ahead of his time, offering a departure from the cool realism that dominated the post-war photography at the time.
Text in German only.
Poem by Albert Ehrismann.
©Photography by René Groebli