Germaine Krull

Germaine Luise Krull (20 November 1897 – 31 July 1985) was a photographer, political activist, and hotel owner. Her nationality has been categorized as German, French, and Dutch, but she spent years in Brazil, Republic of the Congo, Thailand, and India.

Biography Krull was born in Posen-Wilda, a district of Posen (then in Germany; now Poznań, Poland), of an affluent German family. In addition, her father's views on social justice "seem to have predisposed her to involvement with radical politics."

In Paris between 1926 and 1928, Krull became friends with Sonia Delaunay, Robert Delaunay, Eli Lotar, André Malraux, Colette, Jean Cocteau, André Gide and others; her commercial work consisted of fashion photography, nudes, and portraits.

By 1928 Krull was considered one of the best photographers in Paris, along with André Kertész and Man Ray. Her book Études de Nu ("Studies of Nudes") published in 1930 is still well-known today. Among her subjects during this period were buildings (such as casinos and palaces), automobiles, celebrities, and common people.

Selected works Krull's archives are kept at the Museum Folkwang in Essen, Germany. Detroit Public Library Digital Collection houses a portrait of singer Adelaide Hall by Germaine Krull dated 1929, photographed during Blackbirds residency at the Moulin Rouge, Paris.

Books Krull, Germaine. Métal. Paris: Librairie des arts décoratifs, 1928. (New facsimile edition published in 2003 by Ann and Jürgen Wilde, Köln.) Krull, Germaine. 100 x Paris. Berlin-Westend: Verlag der Reihe, 1929. Bucovich, Mario von. Paris. New York: Random House, 1930. (With photographs by Krull.) Colette. La Chatte. Paris: B. Grasset, 1930. (With photographs by Krull.) Krull, Germaine. Études de Nu. Paris: Librairie des Arts Décoratifs, 1930. Nerval, Gérard de, and Germaine Krull. Le Valois. Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1930. Warnod, André. Visages de Paris. Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1930. (With photographs by Krull.) Krull, Germaine, and Claude Farrère. La Route Paris-Biarritz. Paris: Jacques Haumont, 1931. Morand, Paul, and Germaine Krull. Route de Paris à la Méditerranée. Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1931. Simenon, Georges, and Germaine Krull. La Folle d'Itteville. Paris: Jacques Haumont, 1931. Krull, Germaine, and André Suarès. Marseille. Paris: Librairie Plon, 1935. Krull, Germaine, Raúl Lino, and Ruy Ribeiro Couto. Uma Cidade Antiga do Brasil, Ouro Preto. Lisboa: Edições Atlântico, 1943. Vailland, Roger. La Bataille d'Alsace (Novembre-Décembre 1944). Paris: Jacques Haumont, 1945. (With photographs by Krull.) Krull, Germaine. Chiengmai. Bangkok: Assumption Printing Press, 1950–1959? Krull, Germaine, and Dorothea Melchers. Bangkok: Siam's City of Angels. London: R. Hale, 1964. Krull, Germaine, and Dorothea Melchers. Tales from Siam. London: R. Hale, 1966. Krull, Germaine. Tibetans in India. Bombay: Allied Publishers, 1968. Krull, Germaine. La Vita Conduce la Danza. Firenze: Filippo Giunti, 1992. . (Autobiography of Krull in French, La vie mène la danse or "Life Leads the Dance", translated into Italian by Giovanna Chiti.) Krull, Germaine. La vie mène la danse. Paris : Textuel editions, 2015. . Frizot, Michel. Germaine Krull. Paris : Hazan editions, 2015. . (Catalog of the exhibition "Germaine Krull (1897-1985), Jeu de Paume museum, Paris 2015).

Films Six pour Dix Francs (France, 1930) Il Partit pour un Long Voyage (France, 1932)