My First Life (Expo 54)

In 2014, Agnès Varda and her daughter Rosalie rediscovered together the silver gelatin prints from that first exhibition. These prints are now on display in their original form at the Finnish Museum of Photography, alongside previously unseen prints. The exhibition showcases the work of a visionary photographer, full of humor and sensitivity, whose images foreshadow her long career as a filmmaker and artist.

Filmmaker Agnès Varda (1928–2019) is known for her films Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962), One sings, the other doesn't (1977), Vagabond (1985) and Faces Places (2017). Varda was also a visual artist, and of her three creative careers, her work as a photographer is the least well-known.

Agnès Varda became a photographer after moving to Paris in the late 1940s. Her portrait prints—which include commissioned works and photos of friends—demonstrate the meticulous care with which she staged her subjects during photo shoots. Varda worked with a Rolleiflex and a folding camera. Some of her favorite subjects came from her neighborhood, the 14th arrondissement of Paris. It was there that Varda captured the charm of the neighborhood’s dilapidated urban landscapes and its residents.

Varda opened her very first photography exhibition on June 1, 1954. The exhibition was held in the courtyard of her studio at 86 Rue Daguerre, an address that would soon become legendary. Prints glued to wooden panels were hung on the walls and shutters of the courtyard. Among the visitors to the exhibition were Varda’s friends and neighbors, including artists such as Alexander Calder, Hans Hartung, Andrée Vilar, and Valentine Schlegel, as well as the photographer Brassaï.

↘︎ Curating: "Agnès Varda – My First Life" was developed by Carole Sandrin, in collaboration with Rosalie Varda and Sherine El Sayed Taih

↘︎ Support: It was made possible thanks to the support of Rosalie Varda, the Galerie Nathalie Obadia, the Institut pour la photographie, and the French Institute in Finland

↘︎ Website: Finnish Museum of Photography