Willy Ronis is one of the last of the surviving documentary photographers in the humanist tradition of Kertész and Cartier-Bresson. During the 40s and 50s he was a prolific chronicler of many corners of French social life, especially the working people of Paris. He tended to wear his politics on his sleeve, often photographing strikes, demonstrations, occupations of factories and the like. For this reason, he also kept his distance from the American and British press. Ronis's images, like those of countless Realist artists before him, aim to capture the poetry of the streets. Ever respectful of his subjects, Ronis's gaze is always affectionate and discrete. Unlike many documentary photographers, who search out freaks and weirdoes, Ronis seeks out the typical and the ordinary. Yet, beneath the surface, one senses a subtle sense of melancholy and muted nostalgia.