Christer Strömholm - Enfants Terribles - 2010

Enfants Terribles is a notable exhibition catalog and photography book by the legendary Swedish photographer Christer Strömholm (1918–2002). Published posthumously, it functions as a curated retrospective of one of the most poignant yet lesser-known themes in his extensive body of work: his photography of children.

The book features 30 of Strömholm's most renowned images of children, captured throughout his global travels in the mid-20th century. The title itself—Enfants Terribles (French for "terrible children" or lawbreakers of tradition)—hints at the unconventional nature of the imagery. Unlike the sentimentalized, charming, or anecdotal portraits popular in mid-century "French romanticism," Strömholm’s approach to photographing youth is entirely distinct. The images are characterized by a deep, infinite sadness and a gritty, high-contrast black-and-white aesthetic. Strömholm avoids treating his subjects as decorative. Instead, he captures children with an intense gravity, capturing their psychological isolation, resilience, and complex inner worlds. True to his broader photographic philosophy, the imagery often highlights children living on the fringes of society, capturing moments of loneliness, rebellion, or quiet contemplation.

Strömholm is internationally celebrated for his existential, subjective street photography—most famously compiled in his masterpiece Poste Restante—as well as his intimate portraits of the transgender community in Paris’s Place Blanche. Enfants Terribles highlights how his signature "existentialist diary" style and deeply tolerant vision of humanity extended to the youngest members of society.