France, painting and the birth of photography

Join Tony Maniaty to explore the shock impact of photography on the 19th-century French art world and its significant influence on the impressionists and beyond.

Traditionally, French artists saw photography’s ability to reproduce reality as a direct threat to their ‘life-like’ representations on canvas. As the medium advanced and painting styles changed, more adventurous artists embraced photography as a tool for capturing fleeting moments. By the early 20th-century, photography in France had become a recognised art form.

Based in Paris and Sydney, Tony Maniaty is an author, photojournalist and former associate professor of creative practice at the University of Technology Sydney. He is a widely published photographer, including his 2020 photobook Our hearts are still open: Paris with love and hope.