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A month of
photography
 The
Alliance Francaise of Madras is giving a special thrust to the art of photography by celebrating the entire period of May as
'A Month of Photography'.
At every instant, our view is invaded by different kinds of photos: images of current events in the newspapers, publicity material like posters. But photography is indeed an art:
in order to highlight this little-known art, the AFA has decided to focus on photography in the month of May through four different exhibitions to begin with, followed by a workshop and film screenings. There will be an
exhibition by two French photographers, Yannick Cormier and Marie Accomiato, who have dedicated their work to people in India through their lens. Two visions of this country that
continue to fascinate photographers. And, just the inverse, two Indians have come back from France with unusual and captivating pictures. Four different views, intersecting views of France and India.
An exhibition was held from May 3 to 8 on 'Objectifs croises' by Rannjan Joawn & Yannick Cormier.
For five years, Rannjan has contributed his bit to the world of fashion and the exacting world of advertising. He has undergone training with Venket Ram ranked among Chennai's ace lens men. His client list includes
Cavinkare, Hutch,
Residency Towers, Residency,
ITC Sheraton, The Park, TI Cycles,
Taminadu Tourism,
Raj TV, FA, Amaron Batteries, Southern
Railways, (Tamil film) Unnai Saran Adeindhen
and decor magazines like 'Design Today'. Indian design interiors often call on him for their specialised editorial shoots.
 Yannick Cormier, a French photographer based in Paris, is enthusiastic about the beauty that can be created by a single press of a button. He collaborates with the agency Wostok in Paris for whom he is on a project for developing a documentary on India.
Yannick has worked with legends like Patrick Deplarchelier Paolo and William Klein. He has also conducted several exhibitions in Paris and Berlin and has won special awards for his photographs.
A French photographer in India and an Indian photographer in France were on the roads, to photograph and to capture images that speak. Each one has given the other's country a special touch - one that is different,
intriguing....Perhaps it is an interface between beauty and reality. Their perception, influenced by their own culture, permits the two to achieve a certain distance in their observation of life of another country, thereby achieving subtlety of a surrealistic nature.
May 10 to 15 - French Urbanscapes' - Atul Sharma
Atul Sharma, a lawyer, who chose photography as a medium of expression and eventually took it up full time: He has previously exhibited
in France and had held an exhibition in New Delhi in 2000 called the 'Exploration in Digital Imagery'. Also an advertising photographer, he has worked with some of the largest advertising companies such as Lintas, Ogilvy & Mather, Hindustan Thompson,
Saatchi & Saatchi, Rediffusion among others.
 His personal images are always
candid in available light. "These images are given to me by nature and I feel my own contribution is minimal. The light, composition and colours, which serendipitiously fall into place, are not in my control. All
I do is click the camera. The feeling I experience at the moment of clicking is ethereal... It is hard for me to put it in words..."
'French Urbanscapes' is a collection of images that was shot during the three trips that Atul made to France between 2000 and 2002.
He did not shoot to a preconceived theme. They were all some moments from his sojourn in a beautiful country, of which he gets fonder with every trip. The exhibition reflects his perception of contemporary France.
May 17 to May
22 - Cornets Indiens, Marie Accomiato
Marie is not a reporter at heart; she is not one to impose a theme. Her golden rule is to give herself up to the moment, to take the time to stand and stare. She sketches a poetic, sensitive vision of India. The eye of a woman.
Trained in black and white printing, she pursued at the same time, a personal photographic quest through the bare female, landscapes and dance. Everything from taking of the picture to its printing is conceived in terms of aesthetics and meaning.
She has produced a coherent body of work, which she exhibits regularly in Paris. It was with the discovery of the Indian continent that her work really came into its own. In the last seven years, she has been
crisscrossing the country of her choice from Rajasthan to Sikkim, Gujarat to Tamil Nadu, Orissa to Kerala without forgetting Uttar Pradesh and, of course, Goa. She approaches this
civilisation with respect and curiosity and has no preconceived notions. When she says she feels at home in it, she does so with the utmost care. Her photographs show us, through her way of looking at India, that the country has in her one of the most ardent admirers.
The exhibitions will be on at Alliance Francaise of Madras Gallery, Monday-Friday 0930 to 1900 hrs; Saturday 0930 to 1300 hrs.
A workshop will be held from May 17 to 22 by
Yannick Cormier & Rannjan Joawn.
To help understand better the technicalities of this art, sharpen the view, the workshop will be conducted by the two professionals. Participants will work on themes with guidance from the professionals. Best photos will be exhibited at the end of the workshop.
Information &
registration at the reception of Alliance
Francaise.
RR
Published on 15th May 2004
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