PHOTOGRAPHY

Thomas Rousset – Praberians

by Thomas Rousset

“This artistic project is the result of four years of research developed around a unique place: the village of Prabert. My photos offer an ambiguous overlapping of representations and realities, a mixture that is constantly flirting with the limits of real life and imagination, and result in a staging device that plays with the codes of both fairytales and realism. Here routine and strangeness dovetail, the Here and the Elsewhere become indistinguishable, tracks are covered up, time and space slowly crumble. The framework rests on the setting, often dipping in Fellini for inspiration in its colors or Kusturica in its folly. The situations showcased are absurd and create a picturesque and playful world. The subjects, who often take the central position in terms of composition, seem to come from a different time or culture. Their adornments and costumes only reinforce this melting pot of traditions. Animals also hold a very significant role, through ritual or even sacred function. This blend of references creates intense activity, symbolizing the coming together, the thresholds and crossroads in the creation of a new society. The objects that are enhanced here speak of the effort behind organization and solidarity. Cultures are hence rethought and transformed into bridges. Borders are no longer considered as walls but rather as areas of contact. “Praberians” is therefore a resolutely utopian world, and this series, the result of a sudden awareness of how shallow the notion of community is in our contemporary Western world.“