The French photographer residing in Madrid Pierre Gonnordwho knew how to portray the soul of the disinherited or of a former president of the Government, has died at the age of 60, as reported this Monday by the Reina Sofía Museum in the Spanish capital.
The national museum reported that its funeral chapel opened this morning at 11:00 local time (GMT+2) at the San Isidro Mortuary in Madrid, where a mass will be celebrated this afternoon at 8:00 p.m.
The self-taught artist has exhibited his work around the world, including his portraits in institutional collections such as the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris or the collection of the French State, among others. Likewise, he has participated as a guest in artistic events such as the Venice Biennale, the Arles International Meetings or the Photo-Festival of Beijing (Caochangdi), Helsinki and Bratislava.
Author, among other works, of the portrait of the former president of the Spanish Government José Luis Rodríguez Zapaterowhich hangs in the Moncloa, the artist was known for his continued presence in Spain and for his regular exhibitions at the Madrid gallery Juana de Aizpuru.
“The importance of Gonnord was highlighted by President Zapatero, who commissioned the French photographer to create the portrait that today hangs in the room before the Council of Ministers room. “He is the only former president who has chosen a photographer to portray him,” the photographer also noted in X. Moeh Attiar.
“He was a great person and a better photographer. He pursued and found the soul of each protagonist of the magnificent photographs of him. A premature death of someone who loved photography as much as life and who knew how to portray both vagabonds and kings,” he noted next to him in X the photographer. Gervasio Sanchez. Thus, as the University of Navarra Museum highlights, “Gonnord’s gaze focused on characters disinherited by society, on whom the weight of lineage and tradition falls.”
Alcobendas International Photography Award winner, Gonnord was known for his portraits and landscapes, which explore themes such as identity, isolation and loneliness. He was established as one of the most important and awarded social portraitists today, after having developed a work in which the majority of his characters belong to social groups with a strong cultural identity.
Source: EFE
