Stunning Black and White Photographs Captured the Spirit of Early 20th Century Athletics

My nanny Dudu, 40, on rue Cortambert in Paris, 1904.

Jacques Henri Lartigue/Ministère de la Culture-France/AAJHL

Jacques Henri Lartigue was fascinated by the ascent of sport in the early 20th century as a fashionable pastime for the middle classes, and was himself a keen sportsman. Lartigue’s entirely unposed photographs, presented album-style in this gorgeous, luxurious and delightful volume, capture both the joyous exuberance of amateur sports––racing, skiing, tennis, gymnastics, hang gliding––and the particular character of its popularity in the first half of the 20th century. Continue reading »