Balthazar Korab –

Architect of Photography
by John Comazzi

Korab took this shot looking down from the E​ iffel Tower​,
in Paris, France, circa 1951.

An example of vernacular architecture, Korab

captured this mud-brick structure in a small town
near Kawkaban, Yemen (1978).

Talk with ​Balthazar Korab long enough, and a consistent narrative ​emerges ​— one of a life and
career replete with intriguing contradictions. A photographer with no formal training, he first ​aspired
to be a painter but instead studied architecture, and prefers to be known as “an architect who
makes pictures rather than a photographer who i​ s​ knowledgeable about architecture.”
He ​has practiced in a field of photography dominated by large- and medium-format devices but
often favors the quickness and agility afforded by handheld 35 mm cameras. And though he ​will
maintain that his training and practice in architecture provided him with the “necessary skills to
more completely understand how a building works,” on location he will often wander with an almost
childlike fascination, as if he ​is searching​ for something elusive.
His photography ​demonstrates many of these contradictions as well. His professional images of
architecture ​are recognized for displaying a precision befitting their Modernist subjects, but they
are often layered with the idiosyncrasies of atmosphere, weathering, and activity that confound an
otherwise “disciplined” picture.
He ​has been ​widely ​celebrated for his images of iconic Modern architecture, though he often
prefers to photograph vernacular buildings, industrial sites, and anonymous structures found in
small villages and nameless towns. And when ​asked ​to characterize his work in a single sentence,
he simply d​ escribes​ it as “softspoken with a bite.”
 Korab and his friend L ​ ászló Kollár​ t​ eamed​ on an
entry for the S
​ ydney Opera House​ design
"​John Deere​ ​was​ the most challenging of S​ aarinen's
competition. Korab later visited J​ ørn Utzon's
buildings to photograph because the darkness and texture
completed​ building as a photographer. Photo:
of the Corten steel created difficult light and shadow
Balthazar Korab
conditions. For me it was a project of discovery - I had to
discover the architecture over time." — ​Balthazar Korab

When faced with the complexities of architecture, Korab pushes the medium of photography to
overcome its inherent limitations, such as the inability to capture the dynamics of atmosphere,
activity, and change over time. And because of his intuitive and improvisational approach, his
photography ​represents architecture as a complex and ​complicated subject, created through
collaborative processes, shaped by the contingencies of construction, and transformed by
unforeseen patterns of use.
His photography, which combines the exactitude of a forensic detective with the grand narrative
breadth of a documentarian, provides a vast repository of source material critical for substantiating
the cultural value of Modern buildings under restoration and, more importantly, those at risk of
demolition.
While designers, educators, historians, and consumers of architecture often ascribe a calculated
objectivity to the images of designed environments, it is undeniable that those images are always
inflected by the particular approach that each photographer brings to bear on his or her subjects.
What results, then, from the translation of architecture through photography amounts to differences
in the sensibilities, practices, and circumstances of individual photographers.
And those differences, it turns out, make all the difference.

Comazzi, John. (2012, May 12). ​Balthazar Korab, Architect of Photography. ​Retrieved from
Architecture Week​, http://www.architectureweek.com/2012/1205/
CUESTIONARIO
Lee el texto varias veces y responde las siguientes actividades.

1. Falso o Verdadero: debes indicar en qué renglón del texto encontraste la pregunta
y si la respuesta es f​ also​ debes explicar por qué.
2. Si son preguntas abiertas, responde en español y también indica el renglón donde
ubicaste la respuesta en el texto.
3. En las secciones de vocabulario y verbos, debes incluir la traducción de la frase en
español.

Si te queda alguna duda, coméntala en clase.

READING COMPREHENSION

#1 FALSO O VERDADERO: John Deere fue el

edificio más fácil de fotografiar.

#2 FALSO O VERDADERO: Korab prefiere ser

reconocido como un fotógrafo de
arquitectura.

#3 ¿De qué le sirvieron sus prácticas y

entrenamiento como arquitecto?

#4 FALSO O VERDADERO: Las imágenes más

celebres de Korab son las de edificios
anónimos encontrados en pequeñas aldeas y
pueblos.

#5 ¿Cómo describe él mismo a su obra?

VOCABULARY

#1 Identify the SUFFIXES + MEANINGS in the

following words : designers, consumers

#2 Identify the articles, prepositions and nouns :

the images of designed environments

#3 Identify the SUFFIXES + MEANINGS :

unforeseen patterns of use

#4 Identify the articles, prepositions and nouns:

: a well-regarded entry for the Sydney Opera
House design competition

#5 Identify the articles, prepositions and nouns :

the exactitude of a forensic detective with the
grand narrative breadth of a documentarian

GRAMMAR: VERBS
#1 ID VERB & TENSES: He first aspired to be a
painter but instead studied architecture.

#2 VERB OR ADJECTIVE : a complex and

COMPLICATED subject

#3 ID VERB & TENSES: He is searching for

something elusive.

#4 ID VERB & TENSES: On location he will often

wander with an almost childlike fascination.

#5 ID VERB & TENSES: He has been widely

celebrated for his images of iconic Modern
architecture.

SAY IT IN SPANISH!

#1 Those differences make all the difference.

#2 Korab pushes the medium of photography to

overcome its inherent limitations.

#3 The inability to capture the dynamics of

atmosphere, activity, and change over time

#4 The cultural value of Modern buildings under

restoration and, more importantly, those at
risk of demolition

#5 Because of his intuitive and improvisational

approach, his photography represents
architecture as a complex and complicated
subject.

MISCELANEOUS

#1 BEST DEFINITION: differences in the

SENSIBILITIES, practices, and circumstances
of individual photographers. a) sentimientos
b) sensibilidades c) sensaciones

#2 BEST DEFINITION: The TRANSLATION of

architecture through photography. a)
traducción b) desplazamiento c) versión

#3 ID VERB + TENSE: His photography

demonstrates many of these contradictions
as well.

#4 FALSO O VERDADERO: Korab es muy

disciplinado al momento de tomar sus
fotografías.

#5 ¿Cómo representa a la arquitectura su

fotografía?
Final Question

FALSO O VERDADERO: La fotografía de

arquitectura siempre es objetiva.

GLOSSARY:
a. ubica estas palabras en el texto y escribe su traducción en español de acuerdo al contexto.

1. Talk (v.) 30. Describe (v.)

2. Emerge (v.) 31. Team (v.)
3. Replete (v.) 32. Visit (v.)
4. Intrigue (v.) 33. Long-enough (adv.)
5. Aspire (v.) 34. Training (n.)
6. Study (v.) 35. But instead (con.)
7. Prefer (v.) 36. Knowledgeable (adj.)
8. Know (v.) 37. Devices (n.)
9. Make (v.) 38. Quickness (n.)
10. Is (be) (v.) 39. Handheld (n.)
11. Practice (v.) 40. Though (con.)
12. Dominate (v.) 41. Skills (n.)
13. Favor (v.) 42. Often (adv.)
14. Afford (v.) 43. Childlike (adj.)
15. Maintain (v.) 44. Elusive (adj.)
16. Provide (v.) 45. As well (con.)
17. Understand (v.) 46. Weathering (n.)
18. Work (v.) 47. Vernacular buildings (n.)
19. Wander (v.) 48. Industrial sites (n.)
20. Search (v.) 49. Anonymous structures (n.)
21. Demonstrate (v.) 50. Towns (n.)
22. Recognize (v.) 51. Villages (n.)
23. Display (v.) 52. Nameless (adj.)
24. Layer (v.) 53. Soft spoken (adj.)
25. Confound (v.) 54. Bite (adj.)
26. Celebrate (v.) 55. Steel (n.)
27. Found (find) (v.) 56. Shadow (n.)
28. Ask (v.) 57. Well-regarded (adj.)
29. Characterize (v.)

b. elige 10 palabras y escribe una oración en inglés con cada una. Puedes repetir la
oración del texto.