CARTIER-BRESSON (Henri) & NOURISSIER (François). - Lot 54

CARTIER-BRESSON (Henri) & NOURISSIER (François). Vive la France. Paris / Zurich, Reader's Digest, n.d. (circa 1970). Large quarto, publisher’s hardcover with illustrated dust jacket. A beautiful album dedicated to France in the 1960s and 1970s, featuring photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson, accompanied by an original text by François Nourissier. The book offers a comprehensive portrait of the country, alternating between scenes of daily life, landscapes, rural life, industry, politics, culture, heritage, and candid moments captured on the spot. The photographs perfectly illustrate Cartier-Bresson’s humanistic vision and his famous “decisive moment.” Far from being a mere illustrated guide, *Vive la France* serves as a true testament to postwar French society, blending social observations, humor, elegant composition, and a keen sense of geometry. François Nourissier’s text accompanies the images with sensitive, literary prose, without ever commenting on them in a merely illustrative manner. A copy in an illustrated dust jacket showing some soiling, scuffing, and a few small tears along the edges; the hardcover and interior are in good condition.