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.

Read more
Painting, Kitalpha, Adele Bessy

Adele Bessy

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

$2,780

Painting, Envy, Naomi Friedman

Naomi Friedman

Painting . 50.8 x 50.8 x 3 cm Painting . 20 x 20 x 1.2 inch

$967

Painting, Coca Cola, Jim Gleeson

Jim Gleeson

Painting . 70 x 90 x 4 cm Painting . 27.6 x 35.4 x 1.6 inch

$3,264

Photography, Le grand saut, Joost Wensveen

Joost Wensveen

Photography . 50 x 75 x 0.1 cm Photography . 19.7 x 29.5 x 0 inch

$2,357

Painting, Les souvenirs, Lourdes Ral

Lourdes Ral

Painting . 40 x 27 x 2 cm Painting . 15.7 x 10.6 x 0.8 inch

$338

Painting, Maritimes, Ian Leventhal

Ian Leventhal

Painting . 16.5 x 20.3 cm Painting . 6.5 x 8 inch

$974

Painting, Living Today, Jacob Burda

Jacob Burda

Painting . 92 x 92 x 2 cm Painting . 36.2 x 36.2 x 0.8 inch

$3,384

Painting, Viure, Bep Febrer

Bep Febrer

Painting . 74 x 90 x 3 cm Painting . 29.1 x 35.4 x 1.2 inch

$1,088

Painting, D'arrache pieds, Niala

Niala

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

$6,527

Painting, Le tag, Jacques Kedochim

Jacques Kedochim

Painting . 80 x 80 x 2.5 cm Painting . 31.5 x 31.5 x 1 inch

$6,164

Painting, Dance fever, Betty Acquah

Betty Acquah

Painting . 101.6 x 152.4 x 5.1 cm Painting . 40 x 60 x 2 inch

$9,638

Photography, Lagos, Thomas Hoeffgen

Thomas Hoeffgen

Photography . 41 x 104 x 0.1 cm Photography . 16.1 x 40.9 x 0 inch

$2,417

Painting, I miss you, Nizar Al Hattab

Nizar Al Hattab

Painting . 138 x 97 x 2 cm Painting . 54.3 x 38.2 x 0.8 inch

$10,274

Painting, Afterglow, Slava Ilyayev

Slava Ilyayev

Painting . 61 x 122 x 2.5 cm Painting . 24 x 48 x 1 inch

$14,202

Painting, Echoes of Play, Igor Galan

Igor Galan

Painting . 48 x 75 x 2 cm Painting . 18.9 x 29.5 x 0.8 inch

$1,813

Painting, Love Story I, Alik Gerber

Alik Gerber

Painting . 70 x 60 x 3 cm Painting . 27.6 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$2,176

Painting, Prayer, Penyo Ivanov

Penyo Ivanov

Painting . 65 x 54 x 2 cm Painting . 25.6 x 21.3 x 0.8 inch

$1,994

Photography, Le panier, Claude Vesco

Claude Vesco

Photography . 40 x 30 x 1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 11.8 x 0.4 inch

$544

Painting, Geisha, Christof Monnin

Christof Monnin

Painting . 100 x 100 x 2.5 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1 inch

$1,813

Photography, Still, Nilgun Sezgin

Nilgun Sezgin

Photography . 45 x 30 x 0.1 cm Photography . 17.7 x 11.8 x 0 inch

$272

Photography, Venice 213 (S), Brice Gelot

Brice Gelot

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

$2,176

Photography, Monks XXXVIII, Sven Pfrommer

Sven Pfrommer

Photography . 70 x 105 x 3 cm Photography . 27.6 x 41.3 x 1.2 inch

$1,922

Painting, Untitled, Ilia Balavadze

Ilia Balavadze

Painting . 50 x 60 x 3 cm Painting . 19.7 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch

$1,027

Painting, 14th June, Anna Waleron

Anna Waleron

Painting . 110 x 80 x 2 cm Painting . 43.3 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch

$4,593

Painting, Awakenings, Robin Okun

Robin Okun

Painting . 91.4 x 91.4 x 2.5 cm Painting . 36 x 36 x 1 inch

$2,004

Painting, Autum air, Nate Plotkin

Nate Plotkin

Painting . 51 x 66 x 2.5 cm Painting . 20.1 x 26 x 1 inch

$4,714 $3,771

Photography, Desapego, Rocio Villanueva

Rocio Villanueva

Photography . 38.1 x 38.1 cm Photography . 15 x 15 inch

$1,450

Painting, Miami vice, Fenx

Fenx

Painting . 195 x 130 x 2.5 cm Painting . 76.8 x 51.2 x 1 inch

$17,526

Painting, Les Amies, Sylvie Eudes

Sylvie Eudes

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

$4,351

Painting, Modern Lies, Stef Basias

Stef Basias

Painting . 120 x 100 x 2.4 cm Painting . 47.2 x 39.4 x 0.9 inch

$2,780

Painting, Popcorn, Nataliya Bagatskaya

Nataliya Bagatskaya

Painting . 80 x 60 x 1.5 cm Painting . 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.6 inch

$1,571