Sabine Weiss (1924 - 2021)

Sabine Weiss

Sabine Weiss is a Swiss artist and photographer who became known for her street photography and portraits. In 1942 she moved to Zurich to study photography with Hans Finsler, where she met her future husband, the American artist Hugh Weiss.

After the Second World War, Weiss moved to Paris and began working as a freelance photographer. She became associated with the humanist photography movement, which sought to capture the daily lives of people in cities. Weiss' photographs often focused on working class neighbourhoods, street scenes and children's lives. Her photographs were known for their sensitivity and empathy as well as her strong sense of composition and use of light.

Weiss's work was exhibited widely throughout her life and she received numerous awards and prizes, including the Niepce Prize in 1955 and the Grand Prix National Photography Award in 1995. Her photographs have been collected by major museums and institutions around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France in Paris.