It was all a dream: Magnum photographers go searching for paradise – in pictures

Jonas Bendiksen: The Pale di San Martino mountains, Trentino, Italy, 2009

Flowers in a meadow in front of the Pale di San Martino mountains in the Dolomites. The theme for this year’s Magnum Square Print sale in partnership with the Photo Society is Eden. These images all explore the miraculous beauty of our planet’s landscapes, ecosystems and people, while emphasising the urgent need to protect them from an existential threat: humankind. The Magnum Square Print sale runs from 21-27 October. Click here to buy this print

Photograph: Jonas Bendiksen/Magnum Photos

Herbert List: Young man under pine trees, Italy, 1936

‘The image suggests paradise – a young man lying in the grass, sunlight caressing his skin. His peaceful and carefree state contrasts starkly with the photographer’s experiences that year: rising antisemitism, racism and homophobia led List to quit his career in Germany and head to the Mediterranean for refuge. In exile, he continued working on his largest and most elusive body of work – images of young men. List was fascinated by moments of transition and ambiguity, which he finds in the passage of adolescence. Buy this print

Photograph: Herbert List/Magnum Photos

Myriam Boulos: Beirut, Lebanon, 2023

Boulos’s closeup of a woman holding a cockerel shows intimacy in the relationship between humans and animals. Boulos says: ‘Fawzia, a vegan activist and photographer lives with Deeko and Lucie, a rooster and a hen. While discussing the war in Palestine, Fawzia told me: “I loudly denounce the label of terrorism given to my people for as long as I can remember. I am tired of having to defend myself and my religion constantly.”’ Buy this print

Photograph: Myriam Boulos/Magnum Photos

Philippe Halsman: Audrey Hepburn, Rome, Italy, 1955

Oliver Halsman Rosenberg, grandson and archivist of the Latvia-born US portrait photographer Philippe Halsman, writes: ‘He was travelling through Europe during the summer of 1955 and met with Audrey Hepburn at her farmhouse outside of Rome, Italy. Halsman, Rolleiflex in hand, asked if Hepburn would participate in his Jump project. Halsman was interested in capturing the essence of his subjects and believed that when jumping, the person’s public projection dropped and their true spirit was revealed.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Philippe Halsman/Magnum Photos

Leonard Freed: Baby and snake in the West Village, New York, 1985

Brigitte Freed, wife of the late Leonard Freed, writes: ‘Leonard was walking through the Village near his home in Westbeth when he came upon this scene. Father and mother left the baby and their pet snake with Leonard to fetch a bottle for their child in the house. Leonard was left alone; he was scared of the snake, especially a big one like this.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Leonard Freed/Magnum Photos

Raymond Depardon: El Khârga, Egypt, 1984

Depardon: ‘She plunged her legs into the cool water of the palm grove, I heard a few cries of happiness. The water ran through the clay canals, and the palm trees provided shade. Egyptian doves sang toward the spring. After crossing the desert from Abu Simbel, it became a fairytale, a dream, an Eden.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Raymond Depardon/Magnum Photos

Susan Meiselas: Rawanduz, Kurdistan, Northern Iraq, 2007

Against a seemingly desolate landscape, Susan Meiselas shows a children’s swan-themed ride in an amusement park in Kurdistan. Meiselas writes: ‘The Kurdish uprising against Saddam Hussein in 1991 first drew me to the region. Over the following years, I compiled a visual history using family collections and state archives. Who could have imagined swans circling in a desert landscape after so many years of war?’ Buy this print

Photograph: Susan Meiselas/Magnum Photos

Karine Aigner: Male cactus bees engaging in a high-stakes battle for mating rights, Texas, 2022

Aigner became, in 2022, only the fifth woman in 58 years to win the title of wildlife photographer of the year with this photo of mating cactus bees. Each spring, the solitary cactus bees come together in mating aggregations. Males violently swarm a single female who has just emerged from her natal burrow, pushing their way to the centre for a chance to mate with her. When the strongest male reaches the female, the pair will mate for about 10 seconds. Read more here. Buy this print

Photograph: Karine Aigner/The Photo Society

Steve Winter: Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California, 2013

A remote camera captures a radio-collared cougar. Winter writes: ‘The cougar known as P-22 was photographed by a camera trap set in Griffith Park. The story of P-22, trapped in the park due to surrounding freeways, sparked a conservation movement to build the largest wildlife overpass in the world. Although P-22 was recently euthanised, his legacy will live on.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Steve Winter/National Geographic/The Photo Society

Randy Olson: Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan, 2000

Images from members of the Photo Society include their founder Randy Olson’s shot of Mohanis fishermen in Pakistan’s Indus River who still use a 5,000-year-old method for hunting birds. He writes: ‘They tie pet herons to a hoop in the river and submerge themselves up to their necks, wearing masks made from bird skins. By wiggling their heads to mimic swimming birds, they can grab any prey that lands nearby. This method dates back to 3300 BC’. Read more in our My Best Shot feature. Buy this print

Photograph: Randy Olson/The Photo Society

Mark Power: Journey’s End mobile home park, Santa Rosa, California, 2018

Aftermath of the 2017 Tubbs fire, which was at the time the most destructive wildfire in Californian history. Power says: ‘I visited the Journey’s End mobile home park shortly after it was destroyed. On first glance, the picture shows what looks to be a pleasant poolside scene, but look closely and you’ll notice the melted plastic furniture and the scorched but surviving palm trees. The city of Santa Rosa recorded nine deaths and the loss of 3,000 homes. At Journey’s End, two elderly residents died.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Mark Power/Magnum Photos

Steve McCurry: Sri Lanka, 1995

Man walks behind an elephant carrying a large leaf to shield himself from the rain during the monsoon. Buy this print

Photograph: Steve McCurry/Magnum Photos

Alec Soth: White Bear Lake, Minnesota, 2019

‘While filming an online masterclass for Magnum, I wanted to give an example of chance and serendipity,’ writes Soth. ‘I threw a dart at a map pinned to my studio wall. It landed on White Bear Lake and I went off on a treasure hunt. This image became one of the signature photographs in my last book, A Pound of Pictures.’ See more here. Buy this print

Photograph: Alec Soth/Magnum Photos

Cornell Capa: Spectators at a space-age air show, Nevada, 1959

In April 1959, spectators gathered at McCarran airport and the newly opened Las Vegas Convention Center for its week-long inaugural event: the World Congress of Flight. One of several exhibitions featured at the desert spectacle was this space-age air show. More than 50 countries participated in the convention and it drew more than 5,000 local and international visitors.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Cornell Capa/Magnum Photos

Elliott Erwitt: Valdes Peninsula, Argentina, 2001

Erwitt’s contribution to the sale contrasts sacred and commercial iconography with his trademark clarity and humour. Buy this print

Photograph: Elliott Erwitt/Magnum Photos

Photograph: Trent Parke/Magnum Photos

Harry Gruyaert: Double Exposure, Freemont Street, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1982

‘I was fascinated by the visual aspect of Vegas, but to me Vegas was still nearer Hell than Eden,’ writes Gruyaert. ‘Too much of everything. By mistake, I exposed the same roll of film twice. And, sometimes, miracles happen.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Harry Gruyaert/Magnum Photos

Thomas Peschak: Aldabra, Seychelles, 2008

Peschak writes: ‘Swimming in inches of warm water off Aldabra, blacktip reef sharks wait for the tide to refill the lagoon.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Thomas Peschak/The Photo Society

Maria Daniel Balcazar: Bloom from the Earth’s soil, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2019

‘Bloom from the Earth’s soil is inspired by the Afro-Caribbean poet Julia de Burgos,’ writes Balcazar. ‘Born in 1914 in the countryside of Puerto Rico, she developed a profound connection with all the elements of Mother Earth. Her poems are a force of nature, reflecting an identity rooted in the Earth, as ifJulia de Burgos was an extension of it. She found spiritual strength and emotional harmony within her proper habitat.’ Buy this print

Photograph: Maria Daniel Balcazar/The Photo Society