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Summary: Unbelievably potent photographs of Spain¿s Civil War
Review: Capa is considered one of the fathers of modern combat photography. These photographs clearly verify that fact. The modern combat photographers that have come after were all aware of Capa's work and if they didn't overtly copy his style, they certainly used it as a foundation. The potency of these photographs are not so much the action they sometimes capture, but in the faces set in the multitude of back drops of war. The viciousness and tragedy of this conflict hotly radiate out of some of these photographs. Others coolly reflect despair and fear. The book is at the same time a statement about war and a valuable historical document.
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Summary: Extraordinary book, deeply moving.
Review: Magnificent pictures and excellent related texts. Lyrical, yet terribly realistic, view of the Spanish Civil war. Unforgivable portraits of men, women, children who achieve here a kind of eternal life and purpose (you really wonder what happened to each of them and regret you didn't know them personally, and will never do so). Dignity, beauty and love throughout the book. Wish only the accompanying texts, particularly the poems, would also have been provided in their original language, beside their English translations. More powerful, as a Historical document, than any TV footage ever will be. Must read and revisit!
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Summary: A reminder of the dangers of not tolerating good journalism
Review: Robert Capa was very much the Hemingway of photography. A playboy, an adventurer, a genius, he took his photography where it mattered. Not for him the safety of the catwalk or lurking around the homes of celebrities. Capa's photography was the photography of relevance, of important issues and real people - he would eventually die, blown up by a mine in Vietnam while trying to get close to the action.
These images of Spain, of struggle, of determination, of common people contesting with history, stand in striking contrast to the images we are routinely peddled today. In the Gulf War, journalists and photographers were 'embedded' with coalition forces, their images and access to action constrained by the whims of the military. A number of journalists and photographers would die, trying to escape this censorship, trying to get to the real story. Their deaths, like Capa's, are a reminder that photojournalism is a dangerous business, but a vital one in any democracy.
Capa stands as a reminder that it is possible to capture vital images, to electrify the world with a story of history unfolding. He was not beyond elaborating a bit on the truth - his famous shot entitled 'Death of a Republican', was certainly staged - but there is an honesty and immediacy in Capa's pictures which should be inspiration to anyone who has ever picked up a camera. He memorably said, "If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough".
In "The Heart of Spain" we have Capa getting close to the action, capturing the emotion and the horror and the humanity of the Spanish Civil War. A stunning collection and an absolute must-have tome for anyone who considers themselves a photographer or a journalist! Images to treasure, images to inspire
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Summary: Art in the service of propaganda
Review: The Spanish Civil War has been called the most lied about event of the 20th Century. Capa's photographs are powerful, but just another addition to the long line of western artists and intellectuals who surrendered their minds and talents to the service of Stalin and the Comintern during the 1930s. It is a shame that the myth of the good "republican" cause in Spain continues to be perpetuated.
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Summary: To read this book is to see the heart of Robert Capa
Review: This book shows the heart of the Spainish people as they fought for their freedom. One could ask, "What Price Freedom?" Robert Capa lost his one true love when Gerda Taro was killed. To read through this book, to look at the pictures, is to look into the heart of Robert Capa.Bob we all miss you.
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Summary: To read this book is to see the heart of Robert Capa
Review: This book shows the heart of the Spainish people as they fought for their freedom. One could ask, "What Price Freedom?" Robert Capa lost his one true love when Gerda Taro was killed. To read through this book, to look at the pictures, is to look into the heart of Robert Capa. Bob we all miss you.
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Summary: Thank God the communists lost in Spain
Review: This collection of photos are important for the sake of history but must be evaluated in the proper context: Capa and the Loyalists sought to establish a Stalinist state in Spain, not a "democracy". The creation of a Stalinist state would have brought terror, murder, etc. upon the Spanish people and would have destroyed the country. I believe that the record of history (and my own personal experience as a Spaniard) has proven that the Nationalist victory was the best thing that could have happened to Spain at the time. Just look at the atrocities (tens of millions of dead, terror, etc) the Communists committed in Russia, Eastern Europe, Vietnam, and on and on and on; who in their right mind would wish that on anyone? Franco punished some of the loyalists but the overwhelming majority were welcomed back into society. Now that the Soviet Union has fallen and that ridiculous "philosophy" of "communism" has been proven to be one of the worst disasters visited upon mankind those who tried to force that evil upon Spain during the Civil War should hang their heads in shame. Viva Espana!
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Summary: Thank God the communists lost in Spain
Review: This collection of photos are important for the sake of history but must be evaluated in the proper context: Capa and the Loyalists sought to establish a Stalinist state in Spain, not a "democracy". The creation of a Stalinist state would have brought terror, murder, etc. upon the Spanish people and would have destroyed the country. I believe that the record of history (and my own personal experience as a Spaniard) has proven that the Nationalist victory was the best thing that could have happened to Spain at the time. Just look at the atrocities (tens of millions of dead, terror, etc) the Communists committed in Russia, Eastern Europe, Vietnam, and on and on and on; who in their right mind would wish that on anyone? Franco punished some of the loyalists but the overwhelming majority were welcomed back into society. Now that the Soviet Union has fallen and that ridiculous "philosophy" of "communism" has been proven to be one of the worst disasters visited upon mankind those who tried to force that evil upon Spain during the Civil War should hang their heads in shame. Viva Espana!
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Summary: An Essential Book for any serious collector
Review: This is one of the best and most moving combat photo volumnes I have seen. Capa is a genius artist with the camera, compassionate toward humanity and as courageous as any soldier on the field of battle. All these three qualities jump at you with the turn of every page. There is no saftey of the Zoom lens here. The comments from the reviewer of the DC are absurd. This book is about humanity at war. Whether or not the subject matter happens to be from one army or another is least of the concerns. I have seen many fine photos of the German Army in combat and have never viewed them as propaganda nor do I feel any sympathy for their objectives. It is about the essence of capturing a man in his most important minute of his life.
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