Born in London of parents who were both partly of Russian descent, Bill Brandt spent his early life in Germany in delicate health. He left a Swiss tuberculosis sanitarium in 1929 to study with the surrealist Man Ray in Paris.

"To put it simply: Bill Brandt is a genius of the lens--a supreme master of light and shadow--and, without a doubt, one of the most vital and innovative artists of the twentieth century." Jai Wills.