GERMAINE VAN PARYS AWARD

Germaine Van Parys was born in Saint-Gilles on 18 April 1893. She became the first woman press photographer in Belgium. With her curious personality, young Germaine tried her hand at the piano, painting and embroidery. Her parents sent her to the École des Arts et Métiers in Brussels. A few years later, she married press photographer Félix Van Parys and became a photographer in her own right. Her report on the return of King Albert I to Brussels in 1918 opened up opportunities for her at the newspaper Le Soir. Germaine Van Parys thus became the first woman to achieve the status of photojournalist.

In 1929, she co-founded the “Association générale des reporters photographes de la presse belge”. She also collaborated with the Parisian magazine “L’Illustration”, travelled to the Belgian Congo and made a name for herself both with her news photos and her ability to capture everyday life.

During the Second World War, Germaine helped the Resistance by forging identity documents. She also became a war correspondent for the Allied Forces in 1945. An independent woman, she was also one of the rare entrepreneurs of her time. In 1956, she set up the Van Parys press agency and worked with her niece Odette Dereze, also a photographer. In the 1950s and 1960s, Germaine and Odette documented current events: the 1958 World’s Fair, the beginnings of civil aviation, sporting events, royal news, as well as certain news items. Germaine also covered the upheavals in her home town during the 1960s, leaving behind a considerable resource on Brussels at the time.