Yestreday Swiss photographer René Burri received the Leica Hall of Fame Award 2013. The award was presented at the Museum für Gestaltung in Zürich. Burri was also given a Leica M Monochrom for his achievements in 55 years of photography. The Monochrom with a special engraving was handed over to Burri by Dr. Andreas Kaufmann.
Photographs by René Burri/Magnum Photos:
Here is the full press release:
The Swiss photojournalist René Burri, considered one of the best known and most respected photographers of the 20th and 21st centuries, produced a work of images that stand as valuable documents of contemporary history. Leica Camera welcomes the 80-year old photographer, who has been a member of the Magnum agency for over fifty years, into the Leica Hall of Fame. Burri’s iconic images were shot at political hot spots around the world, such as the divided and later reunited city of Berlin. He achieved fame with his evocative portraits, such as the world-renowned image of Che Guevara with a cigar.
On June 26, 2013, Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board and majority shareholder at Leica Camera AG, presented the award in the form of a Leica M Monochrom to Burri in Zurich, where he first studied photography in the 1950’s. The award ceremony took place in the course of the exhibition titled ‘René Burri – A Double Life,’ showing until October 13, 2013 in the ‘Museum für Gestaltung Zurich.’ The exhibition features around 200, in part previously unpublished, contemporary documents captured by Burri in black and white and, for the first time, shows some of his work in color.
“René Burri has created images that are now irremovably engraved in the photographic consciousness of our world,” said Dr. Kaufmann. “His portraits of Picasso, Giacometti, Le Corbusier or Guevara have long since become iconic, just like their subjects. René Burri’s work has played a decisive role in changing the face of 20th-century photography. The links between René Burri and Leica have been inseparable since the beginning of his unique career as a photographer.”
Dr Andreas Kaufmann (chairman LEICA, left) wears the hat of MAGNUM and LEICA photographer René Burri. This shot has been taken at the event ‘LEICA Hall of Fame Award’ at the 26 of June in Zürich.
Photographer: (c) 2013 Walter Gilgen.
Dr. Andreas Kaufmann, Chairman and major shareholder of Leica Camera AG, Burri presented the award in the form of a Leica M Monochrome worth 6,800 Euros 26 June 2013 in Zurich by numerous guests of Leica Camera AG and the Zurich University of the Arts. On the camera body, the name of the award and the signature of the winner is engraved. The ceremony took place at the exhibition “René Burri – double life” instead, which until 13 October 2013 at the Museum of Design and 200, partly unpublished contemporary documents Burris also shows for the first time in both black and white than in color.
“René Burri has created images that are inextricably linked with the photographic memory of our world. His portraits by Picasso, Giacometti, Le Corbusier and Guevara have long been icons, such as those portrayed itself René Burri has shaped the 20th century photography major “explained Dr. Andreas Kaufmann’s decision. René Burri and Leica are unique since the beginning of his career as a photographer inseparably connected.”
In the event paid tribute to Olivier Bachmann, Director of Leica Camera AG in Switzerland, also the location of the ceremony: “It was natural to honor René Burri in his native Switzerland and in this exhibition of his life’s work at the Museum of Design Zurich, the place where he himself studied in the 1950s, photography and started his unparalleled career. “