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MAGNUM
Edited by Brigitte Lardinois

The year 2020 represented a pivotal moment in history, as a pandemic caused dramatic shifts to lives globally, and political upheaval which began in the United States echoed far beyond. Nowhere was this more apparent visually than within the work of a collective of photographers traditionally recognized for documenting the world at large. How did Magnum photographers depict their reflections and realisations, and chart events taking place around the world, over the course of this period?

For their latest collaborative book project, members of Magnum were asked to submit work from the preceding 12 months, reflecting upon personal journeys, artistic developments, and global scenes of upheaval and crisis. A re-imagination of the long-running end of year Magnum portfolio series in print, Magnum 2020 invited each photographer to fill two spreads as they wished with images and text. Incorporating work from the breadth of Magnum’s membership, the book spans personal art projects, reportage, portraiture, and social documentary – offering an in depth view of Magnum Photos as it exists today. You can get a copy from the Magnum Shop here.

In this Q&A, the project’s editor, and president of the collective, Olivia Arthur, speaks about the process of creating a photographic representation of a year.