Back in Arles for the sixth consecutive year, Sigma has chosen to spotlight in 2026 a documentary and intimate body of work by photographer Thomas Savary.
Every year in May, the small town of Allanche, in the Cantal (in the center of France), comes alive to the rhythm of hooves and bells. Nearly 40,000 people gather there to celebrate a centuries-old practice: the transhumance of Salers cattle herds to the high mountain pastures. Immersed at the heart of this key moment, the photographer sets out to document the passing on of a living heritage.
The choice of the Sigma fp, valued for its discreet form factor, allows Thomas Savary to immerse himself right up close to the animals and the crowd. This freedom of movement lets him observe scenes of life without disturbing the shared moment.
At the crossroads of documentary and fine art, his eye relies on the color rendering that has made Sigma cameras’ reputation, to faithfully capture the warmth of the herds and the light of the high plateaus.
The series weaves a narrative close to the gestures passed down from one generation to the next: the detail of weathered hands resting on a stick, the focus on a child grooming his animal, or the pride of a herder guiding the cattle, all sketch the outlines of an inherited tradition and the importance of passing it on. Thomas Savary’s images reveal the simple, self-evident beauty of the bond that unites people, animals, and the land in this region.
By bringing this rural reality to the heart of the festival’s opening week, the exhibition invites viewers to pause and discover a celebration where fleeting fervor and permanence echo one another.
Supporting this narrative naturally echoes the notion of territorial rootedness, a value dear to Sigma, by celebrating subjects grounded in lived, inhabited places. It is also an affirmation of its active support for emerging photography, encouraging approaches that take the time to observe, document, and pass on memory.
Thomas Savary is a photographer and filmmaker based in Paris.
Self-taught, he blends artistic sensitivity with a demanding technical rigor. Trained in an analog darkroom, Thomas Savary cultivates a documentary and intimate eye, at the crossroads of emotion and the intangible. He likes to show what we don’t look at closely enough: time, quiet gestures, the strength of traditions, their transmission, and the richness of the real.
With a particular fondness for craft trades, he focuses on hands, faces, details, the unconscious, to highlight the beauty of humanity and of life itself. Thus, Thomas does not create worlds he reveals the beauty of what already exists.
www.thomassavary.com
@thomas savary
Practical information
Location: 21 Rue du Pont, Arles
Dates: July 6–12, 2026
www.sigma-photo.fr
@sigmafrance
