Pistil, 1932. Silver Gelatin Print, 30 x 23cm. Centre Pompidou.

The prolific Hungarian-born photographer Brassai gives this close-up image of the reproductive organs of a tulip the same erotic quality that he gives the lovers in his better-known pioneering photographs of the streets of Paris. Pollen is scattered over the shiny petals and the stigma appears to glow with fecundity. The flower is in full bloom, but its moment has almost passed. Its precise stage of development is unclear, and that is part of Brassai's intention: 'For me the photograph must suggest rather than insist or explain.'