Ogi did a handstand for him

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Roger Moore milked a cow for her, Adolf Ogi did a handstand, and Ursula Andress posed at her mother’s flower stand – photojournalist Siegfried Kuhn (92) took things from people they themselves thought were impossible. The secret of his success: patience, perseverance, a feeling towards people. And as Kuhn said: “You must be lucky.”

He took photographs for the publications of Ringier publishing house, which published this newspaper for more than 30 years until 1995. Stadtmuseum Aarau now displays its paintings until February 2024, highlighting the stories behind the headlines. The exhibition is based on the autobiography “Siegfried Kuhn – Press Photographer 1959–1995” and hence the paintings in the Ringier picture archive.

Photography determined his life from the very beginning. His parents were photographers at Lyss BE and had a job. As a child, he came into contact with internees, that is, military members of the warring parties who fled to Switzerland to escape captivity during the Second World War. One of the men, Italian, took a photo for the prestigious US interview magazine “Life” and told the boy about his adventures. Siegfried Kuhn says: “It impressed me.”

He apprenticed as a photographer, and then took up press photography at what was then ATP Bilderdienst, which provided newspapers with up-to-date images. I took photos at sporting events and for reports. He received the SBG Swiss Photo Award in 1975 and the BTM press photography award in 1994. A feature helped him do this: “I’ve always stuck to it.” Kuhn had leather seats and stayed until the end of the demo to capture the best shot of the day. “Once it really started after my colleagues left,” she recalls.

Kuhn also owns: Maya Kuhn (85), his wife and also a photographer. “It helped me a lot,” she says. The couple, who got married in 1965, had no children and devoted their lives to press photography. She helped him and took pictures for him. Especially for sporting events such as ski races. Kuhn was on the mountain – “gaggoda”, as he called it – and mobilized drivers on the slopes. His wife took a picture of the winners at the finish. As a team, they accomplished what no single photographer could do: photographing the same racer during the run and at the finish. Highlighted: “Even the editors didn’t know about it.” Maya’s name never appeared in a photo row.

He shares his thoughts on the creation of the three images here exclusively with Blick.

This is how the elderly Federal Councilor Adolf Ogi (80) stood up

«The house story for ‘Schweizer Illustrierte’ was created in a short time. I knew I had to take some good pictures in two hours. it was crazy. I’ve known Ogi since he was the director of the Swiss Ski Association. I knew it: Ogi is enthusiastic about sports and uncomplicated. Always join. I wanted action in painting and I wanted him to do gymnastics. He didn’t have to be asked a second time and he said he could do floor exercises, immediately folded his body and did a handstand for the encore.”

“Bond” actor (89) Roger Moore milked a cow for him

“I was doing a story about Roger Moore when I got the idea to take a picture of him milking him. A star in the barn – that’s a nice contrast. And he thought: He’d never do that. But he immediately agreed, he’s been milking cows for his uncle in America since he was little. I’ve been knocked down now. I had a problem: I needed to find a cow. I called former ski racer and farmer Hans Zingre, thankfully he was at home and his cows hadn’t been up the mountain yet. So he became ‘Meieli’. Moore sat down on the milking stool, Meieli looked pretty at the camera, had to grin and pressed the shutter button. I pressed it. »

Actress Ursula Andress (86) poses for herself with flowers

“The photo was taken early in Andress’s career, when she was a ‘Bond’ actress. Her mother had a flower stand at Maeritplatz in Bern, I took her there and photographed her with a bouquet. More photos followed over the years. She is also a hairdresser in Bern. Thanks also to her older sisters, who own a shop. I was her regular customer, I learned she was always in Switzerland. What made Andress special was that when she laughed, I could never record her, she flatly refused. That was her mark as a film actress.”

Siegfried Kuhn – a life as a press photographer: Stadtmuseum Aarau, 10 March 2023 – February 2024. Accompanying program: public events in the exhibition archive of the Ringier image archive from 19 March 2023.

Source : Blick