Le Monde: Robert Capa’s War Chest

They were thought to be lost forever. After an incredible journey, 4500 negatives from the legendary photojournalist Robert Capa and his friends Gerda Taro and David ‘Chim’ Seymour, resurfaced in New York in 2008. These striking, never-before-seen images of the Spanish Civil War, taken from 1936 to 1939, are on display at the Musée d’art et d’histoire du judaïsme in Paris. Everything about the story of the “Mexican suitcase” is singular, incredible even. In early 2008, 4,500 negatives on 126 rolls of film appeared in New York at the International Center of Photography (ICP), founded by Cornell Capa, the photographer’s brother. These negative came from Mexico. How they arrived from Paris remains a mystery. At the end of 1939, Robert Capa left the capital for New York, fleeing the threat of war, and left the film in his studio at 37 rue Froidevaux. The treasure was entrusted to Csiki Weisz, Capa’s friend, who left the capital for Bordeaux or Marseille between the end of 1939 and June 1940 before being arrested and imprisoned by French authorities as an “undesirable alien.” Meanwhile, he had entrusted the precious negatives to a Spanish friend, who in turn gave them to a Chilean or a Mexican acquaintance somewhere in France before they fell into the hands of a Mexican general serving as his country’s consul in Vichy. When the general returned to Mexico, he brought back not only the photos, but also (according to some sources) stolen money and jewels. Hence the suitcase’s probable disappearance at the back of an attic or an armoire. Following the general’s death, one of his wife’s nephews, Benjamin Tarver, found the boxes and contacted Robert Capa’s brother, who was slow to respond. It was only ten years later, in 2008, that the negatives made their way to the archives of the International Center for Photography. Par Michel Lefebvre Read the full text on the French version of Le Journal. Published on mars 9th, 2013 Magazine Le Monde Exhibition La valise mexicaine Capa, Taro, Chim, les négatifs retrouvés de la guerre civile espagnole Until June 30th, 2013 Musée d’art et d’histoire du judaïsme 71, rue du Temple 75003 Paris France Tél. : 01-53-01-86-60 Books La valise mexicaine, Capa, Chim, Taro 700 pages Actes Sud, 85,20€. Robert Capa, traces d’une légende By Bernard Lebrun and Michel Lefebvre 264 pages Editions La Martinière 40,50€