His photographies

Yet Alexey Brodovitch's photographic work is of a rare intensity. His most emblematic project, Ballet, made in 1945, is unlike anything else being done at the time: blurred, vibrant images, taken without flash, on the fly, in the shadows of rehearsals by Russian troupes in exile. This blur, far from being a clumsiness, becomes a language. Brodovitch does not seek to freeze movement, but to capture its fleeting memory. His profoundly modern images evoke a sensation rather than a scene. They speak of rhythm, tension and silence. We recognize in them the eye of the graphic artist - one who knows how to compose, balance and suggest - but also a deep visual melancholy. Ballet was only published in a limited, confidential edition. Even today, this book is considered a discreet masterpiece, a precursor of emotional reportage and experimental photography. Brodovitch's aim as a photographer was not to document, but to make people feel.