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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Photography, Lelo 1, Cristina Aldehuela

Cristina Aldehuela

Photography . 40 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography . 15.7 x 23.6 x 0 inch

$1,330

Painting, Ouverture, PatMoli

PatMoli

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

$2,901

Painting, Tree, Lee Yu Min

Lee Yu Min

Painting . 23 x 23 x 4 cm Painting . 9.1 x 9.1 x 1.6 inch

$254

Painting, The Bus Stop, Jun Gu Noh

Jun Gu Noh

Painting . 45 x 28 x 0.2 cm Painting . 17.7 x 11 x 0.1 inch

$1,813

Photography, La chaise Bleue, Alain Issock

Alain Issock

Photography . 80 x 120 x 0.5 cm Photography . 31.5 x 47.2 x 0.2 inch

$1,692

Painting, Poker-face, Patricia Simsa

Patricia Simsa

Painting . 100 x 100 x 4 cm Painting . 39.4 x 39.4 x 1.6 inch

$4,230

Painting, Tel Aviv, Helena Liberman

Helena Liberman

Painting . 57 x 86 x 3.5 cm Painting . 22.4 x 33.9 x 1.4 inch

$2,275

Painting, Roma, Karine Bartoli

Karine Bartoli

Painting . 46 x 60 x 4 cm Painting . 18.1 x 23.6 x 1.6 inch

$1,209

Painting, Jeaux de dames, Diane Rosaz

Diane Rosaz

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

$1,934

Painting, Barcelone, August Von Siegen

August Von Siegen

Painting . 18.8 x 28.8 x 2 cm Painting . 7.4 x 11.3 x 0.8 inch

$1,218

Painting, Waiting, Deny Bojong

Deny Bojong

Painting . 60 x 30 x 3 cm Painting . 23.6 x 11.8 x 1.2 inch

$749

Painting, Nice 12, Paquito

Paquito

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

$1,148

Painting, Quebec, Ian Leventhal

Ian Leventhal

Painting . 17.8 x 20.3 cm Painting . 7 x 8 inch

$974

Painting, Jacks World, David Sipko

David Sipko

Painting . 61 x 61 x 2 cm Painting . 24 x 24 x 0.8 inch

$1,299

Painting, Le Verre, Henry Escobar

Henry Escobar

Painting . 81 x 65 x 2 cm Painting . 31.9 x 25.6 x 0.8 inch

$1,245 $996

Painting, L'arrestation, Daniel Ihly

Daniel Ihly

Painting . 65 x 61 x 2 cm Painting . 25.6 x 24 x 0.8 inch

$1,446

Painting, Rainy city, Igor Shulman

Igor Shulman

Painting . 119.9 x 59.7 x 5.1 cm Painting . 47.2 x 23.5 x 2 inch

$3,790

Painting, Untitled, Shay Kun

Shay Kun

Painting . 85 x 90 x 3 cm Painting . 33.5 x 35.4 x 1.2 inch

$14,620

Photography, Three Wheeler, Stuart Redler

Stuart Redler

Photography . 71 x 89 x 0.1 cm Photography . 28 x 35 x 0 inch

$2,515

Painting, Last Supper, Mayer Azar

Mayer Azar

Painting . 100 x 180 x 2 cm Painting . 39.4 x 70.9 x 0.8 inch

$4,873

Painting, Chambre #2, Liu Xin Tao

Liu Xin Tao

Painting . 150 x 150 x 3 cm Painting . 59.1 x 59.1 x 1.2 inch

$18,131

Painting, Travail aux champs, Gûo

Gûo

Painting . 48 x 58 x 0.5 cm Painting . 18.9 x 22.8 x 0.2 inch

$1,701

Painting, Île animée, Sannemann

Sannemann

Painting . 53 x 46.5 x 0.5 cm Painting . 20.9 x 18.3 x 0.2 inch

$2,008

Painting, The Market, Leonzio De Mitri

Leonzio De Mitri

Painting . 50.5 x 60 x 1 cm Painting . 19.9 x 23.6 x 0.4 inch

$1,027

Painting, Untitled, Kcho

Kcho

Painting . 199.898 x 199.898 x 3.175 cm Painting . 78.7 x 78.7 x 1.3 inch

$21,660