(De Gaulle, Charles) Kessel, Dmitri, photographer

Photograph of a rain-soaked Charles de Gaulle praying in the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Nice, 1948

Gelatin silver print. 11-3/8 x 10-3/8 inches, [Nice, France: 1948]. Printed circa 1984. Very good. Docketed on verso with indications to the printer for reduction and placement.

Rare print of this famous image of the French leader, praying on the eve of the elections for the National Assembly of 1948, standing before an altar in his rain-soaked uniform. Taken by the Ukrainian-born photographer Dmitri Kessel (1902 - 1995), whose work for LIFE magazine won him international renown, the image received a full-page reproduction (from this very print) in the book ON ASSIGNMENT: DMITRI KESSEL LIFE PHOTOGRAPHER (New York, Abrams, 1985, p. 165), with the explanation: " ... in Nice in September 1948. He was campaigning for re-election when he was caught in a downpour and refused an umbrella."

Item #232457       Price: $750.00