Death in the Making: Reexamining the Iconic Spanish Civil War Photobook brings together nearly 75 original photographs and related ephemera to tell the story of Robert Capa’s iconic 1938 photobook about the Spanish Civil War. In addition to work by Capa, the exhibition presents new insights into the contributions of Polish American photojournalist David “Chim” Seymour, who was only recently credited for his work in the book, and German photojournalist Gerda Taro. Taro’s death in the Spanish Civil War spurred the production of the book, which is dedicated to her.

The exhibition is accompanied by a 2020 edition of Death in the Making, published by Damiani/ICP. Curated by Cynthia Young, former curator of the Robert Capa and Cornell Capa Archive at the International Center of Photography, the exhibition represents the first in an ongoing series of exhibitions that revisit and highlight the ICP permanent collection and celebrate ICP’s history.

About the Curator

Cynthia Young has curated numerous exhibitions on photojournalism in the 1930–50s, including Capa in Color; We Went Back: Photographs from Europe 1933-1956 by Chim and The Mexican Suitcase: The Rediscovered Spanish Civil War Negatives of Robert Capa, Chim and Gerda Taro. These exhibitions traveled widely to multiple venues in France, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Brazil, Hungary and Sweden. She was until 2020 the curator of the Robert Capa and Cornell Capa Archive at ICP, where she worked since 2000.

Availability

This exhibition is available for tour. If you are interested in finding out about availability or to reserve a slot on the tour, please contact travelingexhibitions@icp.org.

Robert Capa, [Republican soldiers saluting through the windows of their departing train, Barcelona, Spain], August, 1936. The Robert Capa and Cornell Capa Archive, Gift of Cornell and Edith Capa, 2010 (2010.86.16) © International Center of Photography / Magnum Photos

Special Thanks

Exhibitions at ICP are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.