A man shrouded in mystery, Sergio Larrain (1931–2012) could be called a photographer’s photographer. As­suming the perspective of a vagabond, the Chilean captured breathtaking images, largely working in the fifties and sixties. Dramatic light, dark shadows, and experimental cropping characterize these black-and-white photographs, immediate and sensitive pictures of prostitutes, street children, and beggars, who are always surrounded by an air of poetry. At the invitation of his friend Henri Cartier-Bresson, Sergio Larrain be­came a full member of Magnum Photos in 1961, but he then retreated from cooperating with the media. This first publication to provide an overview of the pi­oneering work of this independent mind was devel­oped in collaboration with Larrain’s heirs. It naturally also includes photographs from Valparaiso, probably his most famous book project, for which no one less than Pablo Neruda wrote the accompanying text.