Luc Delahaye is best known for his work in war zones, but from 1995 to 1997 the award-winning Magnum photographer undertook a rather different project. Armed with a hidden camera, he secretly began taking pictures on the Parisian metro. The result? L’Autre, a book of remarkable black and white portraits, published in 1999.

Presented identically, these snapshots of Paris’ ethnic diversity appear straightforward. But their simplicity is deceptive: L’Autre is in fact emblematic of several key questions that face photography today.

This paper will examine these by discussing how Delahaye’s book represents otherness, and how he engages with the ethical implications this presents. The themes of community and cosmopolitanism are also explored, and the importance of space and place is addressed. It will also be argued that the way in which Delahaye’s photography is packaged – the layout, scarcity of text and absence of captions – becomes crucial to its reception. Historical precedents will also be identified, with particular reference made to the renowned series of photographs taken by Walker Evans in the New York subway in 1938 and 1940.

Analysis of these areas will lead us to consider whether Delahaye’s work homogenises or celebrates difference. Furthermore, does his postmodern take on French humanist photography invigorate or undermine arguments advocating the continued relevance of universalism?