• born in 1932 in Gyula, Hungary
• immigrated to Canada in 1957

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Denes Devenyi explains that his art practice as a photographer was not a planned career, but one that grew out of his immigration to Canada in 1957. Coming from Hungary, where the artist had suffered the control of Stalin's regime, Devenyi was at first thrilled by the freedom of living in Canada. As time went on, though, he saw technology and the face of the large corporation begin to pervade Canadian life and sensed a new and more dangerous regime appearing on the horizon, that of modern times. He was forced to ask himself, "How can we protect ourselves from the faceless tyranny of modern times? Having learned the 1000-year lesson of physical and spiritual survival and the values of 'spiritual calories', we can try to help in saving and developing ourselves. But we have to shift. It is no longer enough to be a consumer of art. We all have to become creators" (1998). His "hobby" of photography turned into a career because of this belief. Devenyi’s sense of the need for creation perhaps explains his interest in the artist, which was the subject of his series The Artist Observed (1961), also his first solo exhibition. This series, a look at professional artists from British Columbia in their own homes and studios, was followed by Lonely in Crowds (1963), and Stranger to Myself (1973), photographs from Devenyi’s family album. On this work, Devenyi comments: "The show was a pioneering effort, using old images as photographic autobiography. It was also a therapy and a revealing personal experience. The feedback from these images helped me to become a bit less of a stranger to myself" (1988). From 1968 to 1988 Devenyi taught "Photography as a Second Career" at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia, and in 1970 became the director of photography for Pulse magazine. In 1974 he became associate editor of B.C. Photographer. As a photographic philosopher he published monthly articles in Photo Life (1977 to 1987), and in 1986 he returned to Hungary for the first time to be interviewed by the Hungarian National Radio. He and his wife Margaret were interviewed at the invitation of the communist government, after having fled thirty years before. In 1988, the Musée français de la photographie Bievres in France honoured him with a thirty-year retrospective of his work, and in 1989 he organized the World Festival of Photography that took place in Vancouver, British Columbia.

---. "Portraiture as I see it." Photo Age (September 1962): n.p.

"The genie in the camera." British Journal of Photography (1979): n.p.

Rogatnick, Abraham. Canadian Art (May/June 1961): n.p.

Roger, C. Monthly Journal of the Société française de photographie (1965): n.p.

Routh, Robert. Petersen's Photographic Magazine (1975): n.p.