Robert Capa and the Hemingway Image with Brian Carso

Date & Time

Venue The Studios of Key West
533 Eaton Street
Key West, FL 33040 GET DIRECTIONS

Phone Number 305.296.0458

Brian Carso explores the complicated relationship between preeminent war photographer Robert Capa and Ernest Hemingway, whom he met during the Spanish Civil War. Carso’s illustrated lecture offers compelling insights into the creation of the Hemingway image—both the recognizable pictorial image and the hyper-masculine reputation that informs the popular conception of Hemingway.

The relationship between Capa and Hemingway was one of mutual benefit, for while Hemingway was a notable subject for Capa’s camera, Capa was a prominent recorder of the Hemingway persona. Each benefited from the other’s attention.

In the case of Hemingway and Capa, the back and forth between photographer and subject is enhanced by a shared perspective between the two men, one that sought a proximity to death as a clarification of life’s meaning. Whether in literature or on film, Hemingway and Capa both demonstrated an affinity for an existentialist philosophy, depicting individuals as they confront and resist anonymity, conformity—and annihilation—in the throes of violent warfare. Capa and Hemingway shared a perspective on life, death, and warfare that makes their unspoken collaboration on the Hemingway image a rich source for analysis.

sponsored by The Angling Company, image by Robert Capa