Piémanson
Vasantha Yogananthan
Chose Commune
French and English
Essay by Rémi Coignet
Softcover
Edition of 650
80 pages
230 x 280 mm
2014
ISBN 9782954877709
Piémanson is an exploration of daily life on the last wild beach in France. The beach’s history began in the 1970s when locals set up camp there with no rights or deeds. Nowadays, thousands of campers from all over Europe get together every summer season, looking for a freedom that they can’t find anywhere else. I have camped with the inhabitants of Piémanson from 2009 to 2013.
Representation was a serious issue here, as the Piémanson community has historically been looked down on. Piémanson’s inhabitants are not hippies nor gypsies – they are regular families who have come back every year since the Seventies. For the most part they are people who can’t afford to spend holiday anywhere else.
It was important to me to represent my subjects with empathy. I tried to photograph with another distance – not being to close, not being to far. At the end, this stories is not about taking position for or against the beach but to give a particular view of its everyday life.
About the Artist
Vasantha Yogananthan was born in 1985 and lives and works in Paris, France. He is passionate about human stories and dedicates himself to long-term projects.
vasantha.fr
About the Publisher
Chose Commune is an independent publishing house devoted to photography books. It was founded in Paris by Vasantha Yogananthan and Cécile Poimboeuf-Koizumi, along with Jérôme Montagne and Julia McLaren It supports a photography that explores crossing points between the real and fictional.
chosecommune.com
