Les 30 × 40

Les 30 × 40, also known as Le Club photographique de Paris, was a French photography club founded in Paris in 1952 by Roger Doloy. It became an influential meeting place for photographers, curators, gallery owners, laboratory specialists, writers, and committed amateurs during a period when photography in France was expanding beyond specialist circles. The club’s name was an ironic reference to the minimum print dimensions commonly required for official exhibitions organized by the National Federation of Photographic Societies of France. By adopting that measurement as its identity, the organization both acknowledged and challenged the conventions of established photographic institutions. Doloy, a hospital administration employee rather than a professional photographer, served as the club’s principal organizer and president. He arranged weekly meetings, exhibitions, discussions, and training sessions. Jean-Claude Gautrand was an important early officer and later a leading participant, while Jean-Pierre Sudre served as honorary president. Daniel Masclet, whose independence and criticism had put him at odds with the established Groupe des XV, was also a formative influence and honorary president. The club positioned itself against what many younger photographers regarded as the complacency, aesthetic conservatism, and self-referential award culture of the established photographic establishment. Its Thursday meetings combined discussion of current photography exhibitions with presentations of members’ and guests’ work. Images were subjected to direct, sometimes uncompromising criticism. Professionals and amateurs met on relatively equal terms, and younger members such as Jean-Pierre Ducatez, Léon Herschtritt, Michel Kempf, and Yvette Troispoux challenged older photographic habits. Participants also included Jean-Philippe Charbonnier, Jean-Claude Lemagny of the Bibliothèque Nationale, Michel Quétin of the National Archives, gallery owner Agathe Gaillard, and Claude Mollard, who later became associated with France’s National Centre for Photography. The club’s intellectual scope extended beyond technique. At a time when serious histories of photography and reproductions of important work were difficult to obtain, members shared international photographic magazines, historical prints, and knowledge of major photographers. Jean-Louis Swiners introduced members to photographic essays from Life magazine, while figures including Man Ray and Brassaï occasionally presented their work. Collector and dealer André Jammes showed historical material including photographs associated with the Missions Héliographiques, Eugène Atget, and photographers of the School of Paris. Because of its reputation, the club hosted many international photographers visiting Paris and developed connections beyond France. Les 30 × 40 organized regular exhibitions at Studio 28, a cinema at 28 rue Tholozé in Paris, and also presented work in locations including London and Leningrad. Its principal publication was Jeune Photographie, a small bimonthly mimeographed and stapled bulletin first issued in 1952. Although it contained relatively few images, it became known for substantial writing and debate. Publication became irregular between 1968 and 1974 and ended in 1976. It was followed by Les Cahiers des 30 × 40, which lasted for eight issues through 1980. Members documented the events of May 1968 in Paris, producing hundreds of photographs. The club displayed this work in a continuing daily exhibition at its premises in the Maison des jeunes on rue Mouffetard. Its approach also influenced photography clubs in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and Belgium. The club’s aesthetics and members were connected with the early development of the Rencontres internationales de la photographie in Arles, including a 1975 program pairing nine younger photographers with nine established sponsors. The organization marked its twenty-fifth anniversary with a 1975 exhibition and catalogue. After the accidental death of his wife, Doloy withdrew to Grignan in 1977 and created La Photographie à Grignan in 1978. Francis Richard became the club’s final president in 1995. A 1996 exhibition in Arles reunited photographs by members, and the club exhibited in Grignan in 1997. Doloy died in 1998, the same year in which Les 30 × 40 ceased operating. Although no longer active, the club remains significant as an informal institution that promoted critical exchange, international awareness, and a less hierarchical relationship between professional and amateur photography.

Les 30 × 40 was created in Paris in 1952 as Le Club photographique de Paris by Roger Doloy. Its emergence reflected the rapid growth of photography among a more prosperous and mobile French population, as well as the proliferation of amateur societies, photographic magazines, equipment suppliers, and competitions. The club nevertheless sought to distinguish itself from conventional amateur photography and from established professional circles that members considered increasingly closed and conservative. Its unusual name referred to the minimum print dimensions used for certain official photographic exhibitions. The measurement became a self-conscious and somewhat ironic emblem of the organization’s challenge to institutional conventions. Doloy directed much of the practical work, including weekly meetings, exhibitions, critiques, and internships. Jean-Claude Gautrand served as vice-president, and Jean-Pierre Sudre was honorary president. Daniel Masclet, an outspoken photographer previously excluded from the Groupe des XV, was another crucial influence and became an honorary president. His persistent engagement helped shape the club’s demanding critical culture. Meetings were initially held at the Club Alpine on rue La Boétie and later at the Maison pour Tous on rue Mouffetard and the Centre International de Séjour in Paris. Members discussed current exhibitions and invited participants to show their own photographs for group criticism. The club deliberately brought together professionals, amateurs, curators, dealers, technicians, writers, and institutional figures. Jean-Philippe Charbonnier was prominent in debates, while younger photographers challenged older members and rejected what they regarded as formulaic or complacent photographic practice. The club functioned as an educational and historical resource as well as a social organization. Jean-Louis Swiners shared photographic essays from Life magazine, and visiting figures such as Man Ray and Brassaï occasionally gave presentations. André Jammes showed historical collections, including work associated with the Missions Héliographiques, Atget, and under-recognized photographers of the School of Paris. The group’s reputation attracted photographers from France and abroad, making its Thursday meetings an important point of contact for the international photographic community in Paris. Exhibitions were regularly organized at Studio 28, a cinema at 28 rue Tholozé, and were also held in Leningrad and London. The club published Jeune Photographie from 1952. The approximately twenty-page mimeographed bulletin began as an information circular but evolved into a serious forum for arguments about photographic practice and history. Its contributors included Gautrand, Jean-Claude Lemagny, and Jean-Louis Swiners, and the publication attracted international attention, including from Ansel Adams. Financial support was limited, however, and publication became intermittent from 1968 to 1974 before ending in 1976. Les Cahiers des 30 × 40 subsequently appeared for eight issues and ended in 1980. During May 1968, members including Henri Cartier-Bresson, William Klein, and Marc Riboud photographed events in Paris. Hundreds of images were produced, many of which were not published at the time. The club showed the photographs in a permanent daily exhibition at its Maison des jeunes premises on rue Mouffetard. This activity illustrated the organization’s interest in photography as immediate social documentation rather than solely as a formal or salon-based art. The club influenced comparable organizations in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and Belgium. Its members and aesthetic outlook also intersected with the early Rencontres internationales de la photographie in Arles. In 1975, Jean-Claude Gautrand organized a program with Les 30 × 40 that paired nine young photographers with nine established photographers. The club’s twenty-fifth-anniversary exhibition that year was accompanied by a catalogue featuring portraits of members and their work. After the accidental death of his wife, Doloy retired to Grignan in 1977 and established La Photographie à Grignan in 1978. The Paris club continued for a time under later leadership, with Francis Richard becoming its final president in 1995. A 1996 exhibition in Arles reunited members’ photographs, and a 1997 exhibition was held in Grignan. Doloy died in 1998, when Les 30 × 40 ceased operating. Its legacy lies in its sustained criticism of photographic conformity, its accessibility to both amateurs and professionals, and its role in circulating international photographic ideas in postwar France.

• 1998

  Club disbands

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  Les 30 × 40 ceases operating following Roger Doloy’s death.

• 1995

  Final presidency begins

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  Francis Richard becomes president during the organization’s final active period.

• 1980

  Les Cahiers des 30 × 40 ends

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  The successor publication concludes after eight issues.

• 1976

  Jeune Photographie discontinued

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  The original bulletin ends after increasingly irregular publication.

• 1975

  Twenty-fifth-anniversary exhibition

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  The club stages an anniversary exhibition and publishes a related catalogue.

• 1975

  Participation in the Arles young-photographers program

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  The club and Gautrand organize a program connecting nine younger photographers with nine established photographers.

• 1968

  May 1968 photographic documentation

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  Members document the Paris events and present the work in a daily exhibition.

• 1952

  Club founded in Paris

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  Roger Doloy establishes Les 30 × 40, also known as Le Club photographique de Paris.

• 1952

  Jeune Photographie launched

  [1]Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org

  The club begins publishing its bimonthly mimeographed photography bulletin.

An independent, debate-oriented photography club that brought professional and amateur photographers together and opposed conservative, insular photographic institutions through criticism, education, exhibitions, and international exchange.

• Photography publication · 1952

  Jeune Photographie

  A bimonthly internal bulletin issued from 1952. It was mimeographed, stapled, and approximately twenty pages long. Although initially intended to circulate information, it developed into a forum for sustained debate about photographic practice, history, exhibitions, and aesthetics. Its limited imagery was offset by the quality and intensity of its writing. Publication became intermittent from 1968 to 1974 and ended in 1976.

• Photography publication · 1976

  Les Cahiers des 30 × 40

  A short-lived successor to Jeune Photographie. The publication continued the club’s interest in photographic criticism and discussion but lasted for only eight issues, ending in 1980.

• Photography exhibition program · 1952

  Les 30 × 40 exhibitions

  The club regularly organized exhibitions at Studio 28 in Paris and presented work in other locations, including Leningrad and London. Its exhibition activity provided members and visiting photographers with a public platform outside the traditional salon and institutional circuit.

• Photography education and criticism · 1952

  Weekly critique meetings

  Thursday meetings brought together professionals, amateurs, curators, dealers, technicians, and guests. Participants discussed current exhibitions, presented their own work, and received direct group criticism. These sessions were central to the club’s anti-conformist educational mission.

• 19759 young photographers sponsored by 9 great photographers

  France

  In connection with the Rencontres internationales de la photographie in Arles, Jean-Claude Gautrand organized a program associating nine emerging photographers with nine established photographers.

  Outcome. The program extended the club’s mentoring and intergenerational mission into a major photography festival context.

  Source
• 1975Twenty-fifth-anniversary exhibition

  France

  Les 30 × 40 marked its twenty-fifth year with an exhibition presenting member portraits and photographs.

  Outcome. A catalogue created a durable record of the club and its membership at the midpoint of its existence.

  Source
• 1968May 1968 daily exhibition

  France

  Club members photographed the events of May 1968 in Paris and exhibited the resulting images continuously at the Maison des jeunes on rue Mouffetard. The project treated photography as immediate documentation of political and social events.

  Outcome. The exhibition preserved and publicly presented a large body of contemporary documentary photography, including images that were not widely published at the time.

  Source

• 1976

  Replace Jeune Photographie with Les Cahiers des 30 × 40Other

  Background

  Jeune Photographie had become intermittent and ended publication in 1976.

  Action taken

  The club introduced Les Cahiers des 30 × 40 as a successor publication.

  Aftermath

  The replacement lasted for eight issues and ended in 1980.

  Source

• 1968

  Use the club as a platform for social documentationStrategy

  Background

  The political and social unrest of May 1968 created an immediate need to record events in Paris.

  Action taken

  Members photographed the events daily and mounted a continuing exhibition at the Maison des jeunes on rue Mouffetard.

  Aftermath

  The project broadened the club’s public role from photographic criticism and exhibition-making to direct historical documentation.

  Source

• 1952

  Adopt an anti-conformist club modelStrategy

  Background

  The organization emerged amid the expansion of amateur photography and dissatisfaction with established professional circles and their conventional exhibition culture.

  Action taken

  Les 30 × 40 combined open participation with demanding critiques, bringing amateurs into direct contact with professionals, curators, dealers, and internationally known photographers.

  Aftermath

  The model made the club an influential forum for photographic debate and helped inspire similar clubs in several European countries.

  Source

• 1952

  Launch a debate-focused publicationOther

  Background

  Books and serious historical resources on photography were relatively scarce or difficult to access.

  Action taken

  The club began issuing Jeune Photographie as a low-cost mimeographed bulletin and gradually expanded it into a platform for criticism and historical exchange.

  Aftermath

  The publication became an important intellectual extension of the club despite later funding and continuity problems.

  Source

1. 1Les 30 × 40en.wikipedia.org