Albert Kahn

Albert Kahn was the eldest of four children born to a Jewish family in Marmoutier, Bas-Rhin , France. Kahn's family were not wealthy, his father was a cattle dealer and his mother who died when Albert was ten, did not work. At the age of sixteen Albert moved to Paris working for a spell as a garment maker before starting his career in banking, working as a clerk in Paris, a job he combined with studying part-time for a degree.

Kahn made his fortune through his career in banking and investing in shares, gold and diamond mining. By the 1890s his investments have made him a very wealthy man and he is able to buy the property at Boulogne-Billancourt where he would establish his famous gardens. His home at Boulogne-Billancourt also became a regular meeting place for many of the leading French intellectuals of the day. His home and gardens aside Kahn was not personally extravagant. He was reputed to be a modest, idealistic and quiet man who dressed and ate very simply. However he was very generous with his fortune and established and funded many scholarships during his lifetime.

In 1909 Kahn was required to travel to Japan on business, however instead of travelling directly to Japan he decided to go via China, keeping a photographic record of his journey as he went. It was this trip that was to inspire his 'Archive of the Planet'. Kahn hoped that by learning about other cultures and embracing diversity the world would see an end to war. This massive undertaking saw Kahn dispatch photographers to every continent. Between them Kahn's team covered fifty countries, shot over 72,000 photographs and 183,000 metres of film.

Albert Kahn was hit badly by the stockmarket crash in 1929 and by 1931 he was bankrupt. This brought his 'Archive of The Planet' project to an abrupt end. Kahn's possessions including his film and photograph archive were sold off to repay his creditors. In 1937 the gardens at Boulogne-Billancourt were opened to the public. Kahn died in 1940 aged 80.