Jean-Claude Lemagny earned degrees in history and art history before joining the Bibliothèque nationale in 1963, where he was in charge of 18th-century prints, which he taught at the École du Louvre. In 1968, Mr. Lemagny became head of the photography department at the library, where he created a picture gallery in 1971. From then on, he curated exhibitions devoted to old photography and young photographers with promising careers. He also organized enriching, larger-scale exhibitions every 10 years.
Mr. Lemagny wrote many texts and articles on the aesthetics and history of photography, and produced several exhibition catalogues.
Above all, he was a faithful pillar of the festival. Claude Nori remember this time with nostalgia:
"I recall seeing you at the Rencontres de la photographie d'Arles in the rooms of the Hôtel d'Arlatan, hunched over the prints with a circle of fans lined up to have you look at their work. It made me laugh a lot, the silence around you and the obligatory white gloves that went around to touch the mats. Many Americans were fighting for you: ‘I want to show you my last work’, they said humbly.”
The Rencontres d’Arles pays him tribute.