La Canebière Street, Marseilles – View Through the Balcony Grille 1928

László Moholy-Nagy made this photograph of La Canebière Street in Marseilles, France, during the interwar period. He used a camera to capture a scene framed by the ornate ironwork of a balcony. Moholy-Nagy was deeply involved with the Bauhaus, an enormously influential art school in Germany. Like other artists associated with the Bauhaus, Moholy-Nagy was fascinated by the potential of photography to offer new perspectives on the modern world. The high angle and sharp focus he employs here recall the documentary function of photography. But the artist also introduces an element of abstraction in the foreground. The shadow of the iron grille becomes an intricate design, disrupting our view of the street below. Moholy-Nagy was interested in how photography could challenge traditional modes of seeing. He invites us to reconsider the relationship between representation and abstraction, documentation and artistic expression. To find out more about the Bauhaus and its impact on photography, you might explore the school’s archives and publications. These resources reveal the historical and institutional context that shaped Moholy-Nagy’s innovative approach.