Philippe Normand is the new artistic director for the Planche(s) Contact festival in Deauville. However, he’s no newcomer to the town, he has been in charge of coordination since the festival was created and was responsible for the town’s photography projects since 2006. He organised and curated exhibitions, drawing on the town’s photographic heritage. Deauville has in fact fascinated artists from Jacques-Henri Lartigue to Yul Brynner and continues to inspire visual explorers.
L’Oeil de la Photographie : You’re the new artistic director of Planche(s) Contacts. What’s special about this festival?
Philippe Normand : Planche(s) Contact is all about creation, presenting completely new exhibitions because the theme is “A town’s identities revealed by photographers”. Planche(s) Contact is a collection of contrasting views from artists who have cast their eye around the town and built up their own interpretation of it, including masters of the art of photography such as Massimo Vitali and Philipe Ramette in previous years, emerging talents, students from European schools of photography and even amateurs.
Admission is free to all the exhibitions.
ODLP : How did you put together the sixth festival?
PN : Through instinct, with some clear favourites then lining things up consistently.
The festival is all about a balance between photographic knowledge and the identity of Deauville.
Artistic decisions are then made after aligning the imagination and universe of a photographer with one facet of Deauville, a town I know well.
It is an exercise of style, about making connections which become apparent and reveal the town’s multiple identities.
We endeavour to reconcile the different photographic universes with the subjects to be explored and encourage a range of photographic approaches: reportage, portraits, visual art, staging and reconstructions, photographic fiction and so on.
It is an exercise of style, about making connections which become apparent and reveal the town’s multiple identities.
ODLP : It must be a great challenge, taking over a festival that has made a name for itself among the wide array of photography events. How do you intend to develop it?
PN : It’s not so much a challenge but the opportunity to remain loyal to this festival,with which I’ve been involved from the outset and a chance to take it forward.
I’d like to develop its themes and look at new explorations or subjects. This festival, based on commissions and residencies, also needs to invite new photographic aesthetics, and create opportunities for meetings and dialogue between photographers and visitors. Also, before making changes to its structure and its artistic offering, what we need to do now is reach out and share with school and college students.
FESTIVAL
Planche(s) Contact
From October 17th to November 29th, 2015
Ville de Deauville
France
http://www.deauville-photo.fr
