Reprint: Moholy | Picture Making, Light Drawing, Moving Images | English Edition

Offered a position at the Weimar Bauhaus in 1923, László Moholy-Nagy (1895–1946) soon became part of the inner circle of Bauhaus masters.

When the school moved to Dessau, Moholy-Nagy and Walter Gropius began a fruitful partnership as joint publishers of the Bauhaus book series.

Besides designing and editing the Bauhaus books, Moholy-Nagy created a work of his own: the renowned Painting, Photography, Film. In this book, Moholy-Nagy’s efforts to have photography and filmmaking recognized as art forms equal to painting are thoroughly argued and explained. The artist advocates for a radical rethinking of the visual arts and the further development of photographic design to keep pace with a rapidly changing technological modern age.
Alongside theoretical and technical approaches and explorations into the nature of the medium, Moholy-Nagy uses an extensive appendix of illustrations to offer a comprehensive overview of the many possibilities that photography and film could provide—from press photography and scientific images to Moholy-Nagy’s own abstract photograms and New Vision photographs.

This English translation of Painting, Photography, Film is based in content and design on the 1925 German first edition, making the latter accessible to an international audience for the first time. The publication includes a brief scholarly text providing essential background information and reflecting on the history and impact of Moholy-Nagy’s book.