Everyday life Photography for Sale

In the 1830s, Nièpce discovered how to print images onto metal plates. When he died in 1833, Louis Daguerre, followed by Francois Arago, continued to develop his research, resulting in the invention of the daguerreotype which consisted of an image printed onto a silver plate when exposed to the light. Together they had invented photography.

The first ever photographs began to appear. Initially used for research purposes, photography started to spread as daguerreotype studios opened everywhere. Portrait photography immortalized the faces of the upper middle classes and were later used to capture all members of society. Celebrities were also a popular subject choice and many photographers specialized in taking their portraits, as Jean-Loup Sieff did all throughout his career almost a century after the invention of photography.

In the beginning, taking a portrait or even the simplest of family photos required a great deal of preparation and time in the studio. However, key technological developments brought about the invention of more compact cameras including the Leica and later the digital single-lens reflex, which meant shorter exposure times and made it easier to produce a greater number of photographs.

These advances also helped contribute to the development of the genre of everyday life photography, which became more popular at the end of the Second World War and focused at first on photographing wealthy or urban families. Families, couples, communities... artists were interested in everyday moments (marriage, lovers kissing, children's games). The simplest of moments in life were seen as the most important and were immortalized in film as testaments to the beauty of human life.

Some of the great photographers made a name for themselves in the genre. Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Doisneau, David Goldblatt, Martin Parr and Vivian Maier are only a few of the artists associated with everyday life photography.

Vivian Maier is an American photographer who was born in 1926 in New York. A professional nanny in Chicago, she spent her spare time photographing the world around her and produced around 150,000 photos. Having remained anonymous throughout her artistic life, her genius and photographic accomplishments were finally recognized publicly in 2007.

Cofounder of the Magnum Photographic Cooperative in 1947 alongside David Seymour and Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson was a pioneer of photojournalism but also an excellent photographer in a more artistic sense. He revolutionized photography by working with incredibly lightweight equipment. He didn't use a tripod or a darkroom and treasured a sense of immediacy when taking photographs. He believed that “above all else, the camera is a sketchbook". Henri Cartier-Bresson's photographic technique is unique and unmistakably recognizable. He never photographed with flash and only worked with natural light, something which was highly characteristic of everyday life photography. Often in the same black and white image, the subjects coexist together but are not centred. His framing, focus and depth of field all help us to see the simple beauty of everyday life that he so exquisitely enhances.

Artsper has a range of everyday life photographs for you to discover, including works from Cartier-Bresson as well as many other artists, whose photos reveal the precious moments of the everyday lives of people from around the world.

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Painting, Puppy, Michael Gorban

Michael Gorban

Painting . 91 x 102 x 2.5 cm Painting . 35.8 x 40.2 x 1 inch

$6,019

Painting, Venice ?, Hico

Hico

Painting . 73 x 60 x 4 cm Painting . 28.7 x 23.6 x 1.6 inch

$3,384

Painting, Untitled, Albert Debois

Albert Debois

Painting . 74 x 54 x 0.1 cm Painting . 29.1 x 21.3 x 0 inch

$907

Photography, Eux deux, Bogdan Kotewicz

Bogdan Kotewicz

Photography . 50 x 50 x 0.3 cm Photography . 19.7 x 19.7 x 0.1 inch

$1,450

Painting, Le Vespe, Robert Inestroza

Robert Inestroza

Painting . 40 x 40 x 2 cm Painting . 15.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch

$907

Painting, Citadelle, Patrick Drut

Patrick Drut

Painting . 97 x 130 x 2 cm Painting . 38.2 x 51.2 x 0.8 inch

$5,923

Painting, Together, Lee Yu Min

Lee Yu Min

Painting . 20 x 20 x 4 cm Painting . 7.9 x 7.9 x 1.6 inch

$230

Painting, Windy, Oleg Litvinov

Oleg Litvinov

Painting . 49.5 x 65 x 2 cm Painting . 19.5 x 25.6 x 0.8 inch

$1,632

Painting, Sea walk 2, Elena Sokolova

Elena Sokolova

Painting . 46 x 55.1 x 1 cm Painting . 18.1 x 21.7 x 0.4 inch

$609

Painting, Panda, Ara Aleqsanyan

Ara Aleqsanyan

Painting . 75 x 95 x 2 cm Painting . 29.5 x 37.4 x 0.8 inch

$1,330

Photography, Hot and fast, Shank Arte

Shank Arte

Photography . 30 x 20 x 1 cm Photography . 11.8 x 7.9 x 0.4 inch

$483

Painting, Relax, Jean-Philippe Berger

Jean-Philippe Berger

Painting . 50 x 50 x 3 cm Painting . 19.7 x 19.7 x 1.2 inch

$314

Painting, Blue inside, Susana Mata

Susana Mata

Painting . 87 x 116 x 1 cm Painting . 34.3 x 45.7 x 0.4 inch

$3,022

Painting, Reflets, Marta Grassi

Marta Grassi

Painting . 80 x 80 x 2 cm Painting . 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

$1,934

Painting, Ocean 07, Bern Dodet

Bern Dodet

Painting . 60 x 73 x 2 cm Painting . 23.6 x 28.7 x 0.8 inch

$846

Painting, Old Barns, Milan Laciak

Milan Laciak

Painting . 90 x 80 x 2 cm Painting . 35.4 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

$1,571

Painting, Open water, Nicole Tijoux

Nicole Tijoux

Painting . 90 x 130 x 3 cm Painting . 35.4 x 51.2 x 1.2 inch

$8,219

Photography, Le Plongeon #4, Samzaï

Samzaï

Photography . 50 x 75 x 1 cm Photography . 19.7 x 29.5 x 0.4 inch

$471

Painting, Origami, Nina Urushadze

Nina Urushadze

Painting . 80 x 60 x 3 cm Painting . 31.5 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$3,384

Painting, A walk at New-York, Duytter

Duytter

Painting . 100 x 100 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 0.8 inch

$6,648

Painting, Painters, tizlu

tizlu

Painting . 100 x 80 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

$3,868

Painting, Conversation, Juan Ripolles

Juan Ripolles

Painting . 38.1 x 53.3 x 2.5 cm Painting . 15 x 21 x 1 inch

$7,581

Photography, Illusion, Tanguy Mendrisse

Tanguy Mendrisse

Photography . 40 x 30 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0 inch

$193

Photography, Karma Demo, Peter Teuschel

Peter Teuschel

Photography . 90 x 120 x 3 cm Photography . 35.4 x 47.2 x 1.2 inch

$1,692

Painting, Plage Carlton 1919, Chisa

Chisa

Painting . 100 x 81 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 31.9 x 0.8 inch

$3,022

Painting, Maserati, Boreli

Boreli

Painting . 65 x 92 x 1.5 cm Painting . 25.6 x 36.2 x 0.6 inch

$1,934

Painting, Champions #2, Mic Staib

Mic Staib

Painting . 100 x 120 x 4.5 cm Painting . 39.4 x 47.2 x 1.8 inch

$4,593

Photography, Birds, Francoblanco

Francoblanco

Photography . 60 x 90 x 0.1 cm Photography . 23.6 x 35.4 x 0 inch

$236

Photography, East los (S), Brice Gelot

Brice Gelot

Photography . 40 x 60 x 1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0.4 inch

$2,176

Painting, I Just a Baby, Kim Jandi

Kim Jandi

Painting . 53 x 46 x 3 cm Painting . 20.9 x 18.1 x 1.2 inch

$1,064

Painting, Super Skunk, tizlu

tizlu

Painting . 110 x 80 x 5 cm Painting . 43.3 x 31.5 x 2 inch

$6,769