Léonard_Misonne

Léonard Misonne

Léonard Misonne

Belgian photographer

Léonard Misonne (French: [leɔnaʁ mizɔn]; 1 July 1870 – 14 September 1943) was a Belgian pictorialist photographer. He is known for his landscapes and street scenes with atmospheric skies.

Quick Facts Born, Died ...

Early life

Born to a wealthy family in Gilly, Belgium in 1870, Léonard Misonne was one of many children of Adèle Pirmez and lawyer and industrialist Louis Misonne.[1][2] He studied Greek and humanities in Charleroi[3][1] before going to the Université catholique de Louvain where he got a degree in mining engineering.[4] However, he did not become a mining engineer in the long term.[3][5][lower-alpha 1]

Photography

Returning from the market, 1910s

Misonne is best known for his atmospheric photographs of landscapes and street scenes, with light as a key feature,[6] and as a pioneer of pictorialism.[5][7] According to the Directory of Belgian Photographers, "Misonne’s work is characterised by a masterly treatment of light and atmospheric conditions. His images express poetic qualities, but sometimes slip into an anecdotal sentimentality."[4] He was nicknamed "the Corot of photography".[8][9]

Misonne devoted himself to photography from 1896,[1] joining the Belgian Photography Association in 1897.[10][5] He became a leading light in pictorialism, frequently exhibiting his photographs at exhibitions.[4][3] He also did slide shows.[5] Much of his photography was in Belgium and the Netherlands,[8] but he also visited London, France, Germany and Switzerland. The German occupation of Belgium during World War II greatly restricted his photography.[5]

Techniques

Misonne would often photograph things that were strongly illuminated from behind, producing a halo effect.[10] He would also retouch the lighting effects in his photographs,[8] experimenting with and using many techniques, such as the Fresson process and later the bromoil and mediobrome processes.[9][11][4] He also invented the "flou-net" and "photo-dessin" processes.[7][10][3]

Quotes

The subject is nothing, light is everything[12][8][13]

The sky is the key to the landscape[10][14]

Personal life

Misonne married Louise Valentine Lambin in 1906, and they had several children.[15][lower-alpha 2] He supported himself with the family fortune.[7]

Misonne was a keen cyclist, winning some races.[7]

Misonne suffered severely from asthma throughout his life, and died in Gilly in 1943.[5][8]

Bibliography

  • Tableaux photographiques, by Léonard Misonne, 1927[1][16]
  • By the mill, 1910s
  • At sunset
  • Rainy day, 1930s
  • Exit from Namur station
  • Waterloo Place, London, 1899
  • Tree in the mist, 1910s
  • Strolling with a parasol, 1910s
  • Rainy street with tram in Brussels, 1937

Notes

  1. Sources differ on whether he actually worked as a mining engineer at all
  2. Some sources spell his wife's name as Labin, but this article assumes that the spelling in the genealogy site is correct

References

  1. [1]
    "Léonard Misonne: Belgian, 1870 - 1943". National Gallery of Art. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  2. [2]
    "Louis-Désiré Misonne: family tree". Marcel l'Hoost. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  3. [3]
    "Turn of the Century: London, 1899 By Léonard Misonne". Ridley McIntyre. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  4. [4]
    "Misonne, Léonard". Foto Museum. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Léonard Misonne". Galerie Retelet. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  6. [6]
    "Léonard Misonne". ND Magazine. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  7. [7]
    "Matinee: Leonard Misonne". Mike Pasini. 2006-03-01. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  8. [8]
    "Leonard Misonne". pammyv02. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  9. [10]
    "Monday's photography inspiration – Leonard Misonne". pammyv02. 5 February 2017. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  10. [11]
    "Oil Prints and Bromoil" (PDF). Jacques Kevers. 2001. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  11. [12]
    "Max Dupain". National Gallery of Australia, Canberra. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  12. [13]
    "Léonard Misonne". Galerie Retelet. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  13. [14]
    "When Photos Looked Like Paintings: Dreamy Landscape Photographs Taken By Leonard Misonne". Dmitry. 2001-08-18. Retrieved 26 November 2019.
  14. [15]
    "Leonard Misonne: family tree". Marcel l'Hoost. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  15. [16]
    "Tableaux photographiques / par Léonard Misonne". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
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