David Seymour (photographer)

David Seymour (born Dawid Szymin; November 20, 1911 – November 10, 1956), or Chim (pronounced shim, an abbreviation of the surname "Szymin"), was a Polish photographer and photo journalist known for his images from the Spanish Civil War, for co-founding Magnum Photos with Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa, George Rodger and William Vandivert, and for his project "Children of War" with UNICEF that captured the plight of children in the aftermath of World War II. He became president of Magnum after Capa's death in 1954 and held this post until his own death in 1956 by Egyptian machine-gun fire in the aftermath of the Suez crisis.

Early life
Chim was born to Polish Jewish parents in Warsaw in 1911. David had a sister, Eileen, who was three years older. Their parents were Regina and Benjamin Szymin, a respected publisher of Yiddish and Hebrew books. In 1914 Chim and his parents emigrated to Odessa just as World War I had begun. In 1919 they returned to Warsaw. Chim studied graphic arts in Leipzig and then traveled to Paris, France to study at the Sorbonne.

Career
It was while Chim was studying at the Sorbonne in Paris that he became interested in photography. Chim began working as a freelance journalist in 1933. His first "credited" published photograph appeared in 1934 in the magazine "Regards." Between 1936 and 1938 Chim covered the Spanish Civil War (alongside fellow colleague Robert Capa) and other international political events. In February 1935 Chim was sent to Spain by Regards to report on crucial issues there. Twenty five of his stories on Spain ended up being published in Regards. In 1939 he covered the Loyalist Spanish war refugees on the S.S. Sinai to Mexico and then later in the year he arrived in the United States. Chim was in New York when World War II broke out in Europe when Nazi Germany invaded Poland, Chim's birthplace. In 1940 he enlisted in the United States Army, serving in Europe as a photo interpreter during the war. In 1942 he became a "naturalized" citizen of the United States, the same year that his parents were killed by the Nazis. Chim photographed for Life, along with Look, Paris-Match and Regards. In 1948 he received a commission through UNICEF and traveled to Austria, Hungry, Italy, Poland and Germany to document the plight of World War II refugee children. Inge Bondi, Chim scholar, said: "Chim's heart had always gone out to children, and they reacted to him with complete acceptance. They seemed oblivious of him, but he noticed every little movement, every little pain, every little pleasure. There is no artifice, no bravura of lighting expertise in Chim's photographs of the children. They speak simply from his pictures, as if alive. This intellectual, so adept at analyzing the most complex political situations, so comfortable photographing heads of state, produced his greatest photographs to help children in need." Between 1949 and 1955 Chim traveled extensively throughout Europe and Israel fulfilling assignments for major publications in Europe and the United States.

Magnum Photos
In 1947, Chim co-founded the Magnum Photos photography cooperative, together with Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson, whom he had befriended in Paris in the 1930s. As Inge Bondi, Chim scholar, stated: "Photojournalism was about to enter a golden decade. Television was not yet available to broadcast world events, and editors and the public were eager for news, from which they had been cut off during the fascist years and war years." After Capa's death in 1954, Chim became president of Magnum Photos. He held that post until his death on November 10, 1956.

Death
On November 10, 1956, Chim was killed while driving to photograph an exchange of wounded soldiers at El Quantara (along with French photographer Jean Roy) by Egyptian machine-gun fire four days after the armistice of the 1956 Suez War. Chim's work remains available by way of Magnum Photos and his estate is managed by nephew Ben Shneiderman and niece Helen Sarid.



Photographic portraits
Chim's reputation for his photos of war orphans was magnified by his later work in photographing famous people of his time. These included:
 * Sophia Loren, at home, Naples, Italy (1955)
 * Bernard Berenson, at 90, visiting Borghese Gallery, Rome, Italy (1955)
 * Pablo Picasso, in front of detail of Guernica, France (1937)
 * Henri Barbusse, along with leading left-wing intellectuals in his office at the literary journal "Monde", Paris France (1935)
 * Arturo Toscanini, at his home, Milan (1954)
 * Ingrid Bergman, 35 portraints of Ingrid Bergman, Rome, Italy (1952-1956)
 * Roberto Rossellini, and family (1956)
 * Audrey Hepburn, 14 portraits (1956)
 * Richard Avedon, Paris, France (1956)

Exhibitions

 * CHIM: The Photos of David Seymour, 1996, International Center of Photography, New York.
 * "Close Enough", 1999, The Art Gallery at the University of Maryland, College Park.
 * Reflections from the Heart, September 11 - December 10, 2006, Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery.
 * "Reflections from the Heart" March - June 2006, The Corcoran Gallery of Art.
 * Reflections from the Heart, January 20, 2007 - Sunday, April 22, 2007, George Eastman House.
 * Photographs by David Seymour (Selections from George Eastman House) May 11 - September 9, 2007, International Center of Photography, New York.
 * Chim: The Photography of David Seymour (1911 - 1956), September 29, 2007 - February 24, 2008, the de Young, San Francisco.
 * The Mexican Suitcase,, September 24, 2010 -  January 9, 2011, International Center of Photography, New York.
 * Chim/Gamboa Exhibition: The Mexican Connection, December 9, 2010 - March 6, 2011, El Centro de la Imagen, Mexico City.
 * CHIM Retrospective, October 29 to February 27, 2011, the Jewish Museum, Brussels.
 * CHIM Rediscovered / CHIM retrouvé, December 22, 2012 - January 27, 2013, CLAIR Galerie, St. Paul de Vence, Nice, France.
 * CHIM (David Seymour), February 7 – March 30, Galerie Walter Keller, Zurich.
 * Photographs by David "Chim" Seymour and Roman Vishniac, February 1–23, 2013, Howard Greenberg Gallery, New York.
 * We Went Back: Photographs from Europe 1933-1956 by Chim, January 18-May 5, 2013, International Center of Photography, New York.
 * David Seymour (CHIM): A Celebration of Chim, September 7-late October, 2013, Leica Gallery, Washington, DC.

Public collections
Chim's work is held in the following collections:
 * Magnum Photos, New York, NY.
 * International Center of Photography, New York, NY.
 * George Eastman House, Rochester, NY.
 * National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.
 * Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC.
 * The de Young, San Francisco, CA.
 * Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK.
 * Harry Ransom Center, Austin, TX.

Filmography

 * The Mexican Suitcase. Dir. Trisha Ziff. 212BERLIN, 2011. Film.
 * Chim's Children of Europe. 2013. 7 minute video.