The Planches Contact festival brims with an infectious joy. Here, embraces are warm, conversations heartfelt, and the celebration of photography is exuberant. Attendees share abundantly and receive warmly, infused with a spirit of profound generosity. This ambiance is the creation of two notable figures: Philippe Augier, the mayor of Deauville (France) and past director of the French Thoroughbred Sales Agency, who launched the festival fifteen years ago with his passion for horses and candid speech; and Laura Serani, the artistic director for the past six editions, whose ever-present smile and thoughtful words have shaped the festival’s character since the early 1980s. Serani has evidently found her perfect match in the Deauville festival.
This year, Planches Contact pays a stunning tribute to fashion photographer Dominique Issermann, who, eschewing gallery representation, prefers her work to be accessible in public spaces, enhancing its public appeal. Her photographs, which adorned the corridors of Paris airports in black and white back in 2016, now elegantly envelop giant cubes on the Deauville beach. This is the same beach where Issermann was famously captured, hair in the wind, being chased by her partner Leonard Cohen during the shoot for his music video First We Take Manhattan in 1986.
Dominique Issermann long resisted showcasing her work in Deauville but relented under Laura Serani’s persistent encouragement. “Photography is a leap that transforms time into space. It is fleeting yet enduring, with no limits or boundaries; we are transported to another planet, right here, where freedom rules,” says writer Philippe Sollers, describing her work. “Seeking a collision of details? Here you find it. A woman’s dazzled face? A cityscape? A contorted nude? A baby? Pyramids? An artist lost in thought? It’s all here, just because you are.”
Laura Serani explains, “You’ll encounter iconic images and some less known. There are glimpses from fashion. Over there, to the left, a self-portrait. We’ve chosen not to add captions, letting a veil of mystery enshroud Dominique’s display. It’s a deep dive into her universe.”
Beyond the unforgettable photographs on the beach, Issermann exclusively premiered her medium-length film, Lyrics. Despite her illness rendering her at times speechless, she was met with prolonged applause by an audience deeply moved by her work. Her film, both poetic and unique, swept the viewers into an entrancing realm, aglow with rare and poignant scenes.
On the beach, or rather at the Grand Bain, along the storied planks of Deauville’s celebrated promenade, Bettina Pittaluga showcases her photographs. Her collection features intimate portraits and unique confidences of individuals lounging on their beds. To Pittaluga, the bed transcends its mundane existence as mere furniture, transforming into a portal to personal realms, a sanctum of sincerity and truth. “This residency allowed me to initiate a conscious exploration of the bed as a personal space for the first time,” she reveals. “It’s a fusion of my archival efforts and my recent work in Deauville.”
Further along, at Point de Vue, the works of five promising photographers are displayed as part of the “Résidence pour le tremplin jeunes talents” [Springboard Residency for Emerging Talent]. Among these, one series particularly stands out and has earned the associated prize. Bruit rose [Pink Noise] by Cloé Harent, is a tribute to nature, capturing the strength and vulnerability of the biodiversity on Normandy’s shores. The relentless tides leave behind daily deposits from the sea, and Harent takes time to spotlight these temporal remnants, beckoning us to marvel at iodine-rich micro-landscapes, the natural artistry of the living world.
“This exhibition not only showcases biodiversity but also celebrates the inherent beauty of nature and the minute details that embellish our coastal environment,” the photographer explains. “Here, you encounter my tiny treasures, my little shells, and I invite you to dive with me to find these shells submerged underwater. ‘Pink noise’ is the scientific term for the sound you hear when holding a seashell to your ear—the sound of the waves. In the exhibit, I also present prints of my findings from the beach laid out on the floor. The idea is to engage visitors to stoop down, to interact with the images as I have with the scenes on the ground, mirroring the act of stooping to collect a shell from the sand.”
Franciscaines
Culture in Deauville is epitomized by an iconic and unique venue, Les Franciscaines, which houses a museum, a media library, and an auditorium where cultural offerings are mostly free, except for performances. Occupying a nineteenth-century building, meticulously renovated across several floors, this venue serves as the hub for the Planches Contact festival. This year, it hosts a diverse array of exhibitions, screenings, round-table discussions, and associated events.
Among the notable photographers featured at Les Franciscaines is Richard Pak, originally celebrated as a documentary photographer. Over the past three years, his work has been showcased at numerous events, and he is renowned for challenging conventions and venturing into new artistic territories. In Le Voleur d’îles [The Island Thief], Pak engages in “joyous cutouts,” capturing the islands of Normandy and then artistically slicing them out of his prints. This process yields two distinct artworks: a sea devoid of its island, and an island isolated from its sea. Pak, portraying himself as a pirate-collector, crafts an idyllic archipelago of the Normandy islands.
This year’s standout exhibition comes from Phillip Toledano, a New York artist who has embraced artificial intelligence to craft the imagery displayed on the walls, notably using the application Midjourney. Another America offers a startling reinterpretation of American history, marking its debut in France. Meanwhile, We Are at War vividly revives the Normandy landings on their 80th anniversary, suggesting an alternate vision of the iconic images Robert Capa reportedly captured—images whose negatives have purportedly vanished or been damaged. This series navigates the delicate line between historical reality and the realm of fake news in a conspiratorial age. “I don’t employ Robert Capa’s images or his style in my prompts,” Toledano clarifies. “Instead, I use his narrative as a framework to discuss the potential of artificial intelligence.” Laura Serani adds, “Behind Philippe’s images lies intelligence, subtlety, and a story. There is also beauty, strength, and a cinematic dramaturgy. It’s not the machine creating these elements, but the individual guiding it.”
Continuing the journey, Une fois la folie passée [Once the Madness Passes] by Chinese artist Huang Xiaoliang explores the stark contrasts between the vibrant bustle of a seaside town like Deauville during the tourist season and the ensuing solitude. Utilizing a mix of media, including video, photography, and painting, Xiaoliang captures the complex interplay between individuals and their surroundings, blurring the lines between illusion and reality.
Another notable exhibition is Le siècle des vacances [The Century of Holidays], a collection of photographs curated by FNAC. This retrospective spans various eras and locales, chronicling the evolution of the vacation from leisurely retreats to the advent of mass tourism. Featuring works by renowned photographers like Boubat, Ghirri, Erwitt, Kubrick, Plossu, and Wenders, the display illustrates societal shifts, mixing documentary concerns with a hint of nostalgia. “Each social transformation is defined by its unique linguistic and aesthetic codes; every era has its narrators and historians—today, its photographers,” observes Laura Serani, former director of FNAC’s photo galleries and collection from 1985 to 2005. She adds, “This exhibition offers a window into the intimate history of the twentieth century, narrating both the progression of society and the evolution of photography.”
The festival’s grand opening coincides with the last weekend of October, marking the transition to winter time. Notably, this weekend hosts the mythical “25th Hour.” “While mostly a virtual concept, in Deauville, we capture this hour,” declares Philippe Augier. “We organize a contest that runs for one hour, where participants capture and submit a photo. Normally set for 2 a.m., we hold it at midnight to keep things reasonable. By Sunday morning, the jury selects a winner. Last time, over 250 photographs were entered, showcasing the diverse perspectives that emerge from this singular initiative.”
Beyond this inclusive competition, it’s important to highlight that many of the photographers showcased at Planches Contact develop their work during a residency spanning from February to June. Annually, about twenty artists participate, fostering a rich exchange among photographers from varied backgrounds and styles, supported throughout their projects by the festival team. This ongoing interaction and dialogue fuel the festival’s “laboratory” spirit. Now in its fifteenth year, Planches Contact is transitioning from its formative years into full maturity.
Planches Contact Festival in Deauville, France until January 5, 2025. Complete schedule and designated venues available on the official website.
