Through Jean-Marc Aubert
Published on
updated on 19 Nov 21 at 17:15
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From Friday 3 to Tuesday 28 December included, the Hérault photographer Michel Correard will propose a exposition photos in town hall of Bessan, between Agde and Pézenas, on the theme of “New York, the city that never goes out”.
A project that was close to the heart of the mayor, Stéphane Pépin-Bonet and his assistant in charge of culture. The opening will take place on Friday December 3 at 6.30 p.m., Paul Salvy portrait room, in the town hall, where the artist will hang his photos, during opening hours. Michel Correard, retired Sdis 34 firefighter officer, will also be present regularly until the end of December, to guide visitors. And for tell incredible anecdotes on his travels in the States, in complete freedom. Because Michel Correard who lives in Saint-André-de-Sangonis fell in love with New-York. Interview.
Metropolitan: why this exhibition in New York?
Michel Correard : To embark on an exhibition of his photos is to reveal his soul. The photo is the eye which is only the physical extension of the soul. The photo is to get naked in order to transcribe what the eye sees. The photo is the eternal struggle between the immateriality of the soul and the Cartesianism of the present moment. The photo is in a single click devoid of feeling, the appearance of beauty or the darkness of the soul in its entirety.
Certainly, but then, this choice of New York?
Passionate about America and its emblematic places, I nevertheless hesitated for a long time before “disembarking” on The Big Apple: New York City! The vastness of this city certainly held me back. I had, at the bottom, of me, an uncontrolled fear of being devoured by that which the media presented to us as a munchie of life, a city that never sleeps, where everything is excessive, everything is excess. A city struck by the misfortune of September 11. Forever marked by the memory of hatred and violence. When I arrived, I found a noisy, hectic, colorful, multicultural city. A peaceful city. My night outings, or just before daybreak, made me discover the hidden sides of the big apple. In a few steps, we go from one district to another, from an avenue to a street, from silence to the howling sirens of the police or the fire brigade.
What do you remember from New York?
This city does not leave you indifferent. Far from it. People cross paths and don’t talk to each other. We walk with our heads in the air in front of the excessiveness of the buildings. We are seized with immense sadness when we visit the 9/11 memorial. New York takes you to the guts. A week there is not enough. It will take years to revive this city of thousands of facets.
Retired firefighter, you have a thought for those who died in the attacks
Find in black and white the dramatic density and the sobriety of the daily actions of life. Going to the essential that saves life, such was the “mission” that I gave myself in my photos of New York: to touch the vibrant sobriety of this porous fragility which rubs shoulders with the triumph of life over the imminent darkness. Also pay homage to the heavy toll of the people of the fire.
In short, Michel Correard is more than ever in the heat of the moment, as evidenced by his daily publications on his Facebook page: no need to run to New York to immortalize superb photos around his home, thanks to the colorful autumn landscapes. The shot of hundreds of starlings flying over vines in the Hérault valley is impressive.
Michel Correard could not have chosen better than the theme of his exhibition, which is eagerly awaited by those who were able to admire last summer his magnificent images during two exhibitions, in Clermont-l’Hérault – where he won the Salagou competition – and in Portiragnes: he evokes ” the city that never sleeps “, while he does not hide being an insomniac! Putting New York in the spotlight, this is an exhibition that will wake us up.
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