Description

During a long and distinguished career as a photographer, Cornell Capa spent two decades covering social and political issues for Life from 1946, where he explored these themes across the U.S and the beyond. While Capa was dedicated to creating incisive and important photo essays, he captured some iconic individual images. In June 1948, Capa documented baseball legend Babe Ruth’s last appearance at the Yankee Stadium, pictured here. Ruth died of cancer two months later.

One thing that Life and I agreed right from the start was that one war photographer was enough for my family; I was to be a photographer of peace

Cornell Capa
© Cornell Capa | Magnum Photos

Cornell Capa was born Cornell Friedmann to a Jewish family in Budapest. In 1936, he moved to Paris, where his brother Andre (Robert Capa) was working as a photojournalist. Capa worked as his brother’s printer until 1937, then moved to New York to join the new Pix photo agency. In 1938, he began working in the Life darkroom. Soon his first photo-story on the New York World’s Fair was published in Picture Post.

Over the course of his long career, he explored subjects as varied as old age in America, Judaism, the electoral campaigns of John and Robert Kennedy, ruthless Wall Street bankers and the destruction of indigenous Amazon cultures.

In 1974, Capa founded New York City’s influential International Center of Photography, to which he dedicated his considerable energy as its director. He joined Magnum in 1954, following the death of his brother.

© Cornell Capa | Magnum Photos

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