David Alan Harvey Interviews Magnum Legend Elliott Erwitt

At 85 years old, Elliott Erwitt is still working away at his hobby:Photography. Elliott Erwitt was born July 26, 1928, in Paris, France. He is an advertising and documentary photographer known for his black and white candid shots of the ironic and absurd situations within everyday life. Elliott Erwitt is a longtime friend and master of recording Henri Cartier-Bresson‘s “decisive moments”. In 1953 Erwitt joined Magnum Photos, where in the late 1960s Erwitt served as Magnum’s president for three years.

Born in San Francisco, California, USA, on June 6, 1944, 70 year old David Alan Harvey was raised in Virginia. David discovered photography at the tender age of 11. Harvey purchased a used Leica with savings from his newspaper route and began photographing his family and neighborhood in 1956. Harvey went on to shoot over forty essays for National Geographic magazine.  Harvey joined Magnum as a nominee in 1993 and became a full member in 1997. He lives in NC and NYC, where Elliott Erwitt lives. As David tells the story, the two became fast friends after meeting at Magnum, and frequently get together on a regular basis.

“It’s about reacting to what you see, hopefully without preconception. You can find pictures anywhere. It’s simply a matter of noticing things and organizing them. You just have to care about what’s around you and have a concern with humanity and the human comedy. ” – Elliott Erwitt

Recently, in addition to a million other Harvey projects, the past few years have seen David curating Burn Magazine, an evolving journal for emerging photographers. Burn has published some excellent work, and I highly encourage you all to check it out when you get a chance. You will not be sorry!

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