Josef Koudelka Gypsies Part I

Czechoslovakian born photographer Josef Koudelka became enthralled with the lifestyle of the Eastern Slovakian gypsies he followed and studied from 1962-68. Most of the images in his work Gypsies were taken in Eastern Slovakia however his documentation of his subjects led him all over, from Romania to Ireland. Anna Farova describes his passion with the opening to his book. "At first Koudelka was attracted by the physical beauty of the gypsies... the strangeness of their movements and their facial expression, by their clothing and ornaments; later he was attracted to their lifestyle. In the end he was completely absorbed by his subject. He devoted himself to his subject with burning intensity."

Josef Koudelka Gypsies Part II

You See Your Gypsy

"So I'm back, to the velvet underground, back to the floor, that I love. To a room with some lace and paper flowers, back to the gypsy that I was. And it all comes down to you, well, you know that it does. And lightning strikes, maybe once, maybe twice, oh, and it lights up the night. And you see your gypsy, You see your gypsy." FM

Forget about Assouline's Gypset, this is the real deal. The images and subjects remind me a bit of Josef Koudelka's Gypsy images but in COLOR! Thank you to a special someone for surprising me with this book.