| | | | | | | | Robert Capa, Skier sunbathing in front of the Matterhorn Zermatt Switzerland 1950
© Robert Capa © International Center of Photography Magnum Photos | | | | | Mountains - Magnum Photos | | | | | | | | | | | | | 22 June – 13 October 2019 | | | | Opening: Friday, February 21 at 6.30 pm | | | | | Alt.+1000 Photography festival | | | | | | | 1 - 22 September 2019 | | | | Vernissage: Sunday, September 1 at 1.00 pm | | | | | | MUSÉE DES BEAUX-ARTS Marie-Anne-Calame 6, 2400 Le Locle
Switzerland
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| | | | | | | | | | | | | | Riders relax whilst the Tour organizers negotiate with farmers on stage 16 to remove their tractors from the road, Tour de France, 1982 © Harry Gruyaert / Magnum Photos | | | Mountains - Magnum Photos | | | | | | | 22 June – 13 October 2019 | | | | Mountains have long fascinated photographers from all over the world. The archives of Magnum Photos – the biggest name in photojournalism since its creation in 1947– contain images of some of the world’s highest peaks. Magnum Photos is not known for landscape photography, but the theme runs through the agency’s 80-year history. Many of its members have become important figures in the history of photography: Werner Bischof, René Burri, Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Raymond Depardon, Elliott Erwitt, Martine Franck, Susan Meiselas, Martin Parr and Alec Soth, to mention only a few. But the agency as a whole has also had a major impact, through its dedication to politically engaged photography. These photographs are not only a testament to a very human fascination with mountains all over the world, but also to the veneration and fear that they can inspire. Up until the 20th century, mountains seemed to be indestructible, but today, we see mountain habitats overused and endangered. | | | | | | | | | | On the road to Cuzco, near Pisac, Peru, May 1954 © Werner Bischof / Magnum Photos | | | | | | Part of the exhibition is devoted to renowned Swiss photographer Werner Bischof, and presented in partnership with the Werner Bischof Archives in Zurich. During the Second World War, Bischof was unable to leave the country but took long regular trips to the Alps, often alone. His love for the mountains never faded. He later roamed the world and never stopped seeking high altitudes. In 1954, two years after an expedition to the Himalayas, he traveled to the Andes, where he died in a road accident. At the age of 38, Bischof was the first Magnum photographer to pass away. The mountains –which fascinated him so much – had the last word.
The exhibition was developed by the MBAL in close collaboration with Magnum Photos. It received the generous contribution of Zenith. It is accompanied by a book published by Prestel. A version of the exhibition will also be on display from 17 July 2019 to 7 January 2020 at Forte di Bard, near Aosta, Italy. | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Noeémie Goudal, Telluris IX, 2017 © Courtesy of the artist and galerie Les Filles du Calvaire | | | | | | | 22 June – 13 October 2019 | | | | It can be difficult to admit the idea of landscape as fictional artifice, as if it were a contradiction of our own internal experience. But the fascinating work of French artist Noémie Goudal (b. 1984) subtly compels such a realization through infinitely complex structures and her evolving theoretical approach. Her labyrinthine installation on the museum’s ground floor invites the public to stroll among a selection of her recent photographs. Goudal was born in France but studied art in London, where she still lives, and her work draws much of its inspiration from the history of science. After exploring our ever-changing relationship to the sky, her three past series have focused on our equally inconstant comprehension of the Earth’s origins, or what was not called "geology" yet, at a time when humans believed mountains to be eternally static. | | | | | | | | | | Noeémie Goudal, Soul`vement I, 2018 © Courtesy of the artist and galerie Les Filles du Calvaire | | | | | | Her Soulèvements [Uprisings] and Démantèlements [Dismantlings] series remind us, however, that the craggy face of the Earth is always changing. The Telluris series is an expression of humanity’s obsession with understanding our surroundings, as if taming the land with equations could make our existence less fragile. Goudal seeks to make the viewer an active participant, not only through the immersive settings she devises to display her work, but also through her unique style: her photographs are most often shot in large format and lack any spatiotemporal markers, with a layering effect. On first glance, they seem to evoke American landscape photography. But the artist has left a careful trail of clues that quickly make it apparent that their purpose is not documentary.
The exhibition was made in collaboration with Les Filles du Calvaire gallery in Paris. An interview with the artist by Joël Vacheron appears in the MBAL’s "Could you talk about…" booklet series. | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | © Henrik Spohler, Les Roches-de-Moron (Les Planchettes), octobre 2018 | | | | | | | 22 June – 13 October 2019 | | | | With the aim of inspiring reflection on contemporary landscape, the MBAL partnered with Parc du Doubs (a regional nature park of national importance created in 2012) to organize an artist residency. The photographer Henrik Spohler, born in Germany in 1965, was chosen for the unique approach he applies to today’s landscape during his travels around the world. Spohler’s work always evokes the way humans see nature, at a given time and in a given society. His photographs reveal fascinations, paradoxes, nature, culture, myths, construction, aspirations. In his examination of the park, he explores what we mean by "nature" in the 21st century. | | | | | | | | | | © Henrik Spohler, Mont-Soleil et le Parc du Doubs en arrière-plan, septembre 2018 | | | | | | We gave Spohler carte blanche during his residency at Parc du Doubs; the only stipulation was that he create a portrait of the park, which covers 300 km2 south of the Doubs River along the border between Switzerland and France. The park stretches from Les Brenets, near Le Locle, up to Saint-Ursanne, passing through Jura’s Franches-Montagnes district. From autumn 2018 to spring 2019, Spohler made his way through the park’s riverbanks and pastures on long, solitary treks. He was particularly interested in the way human activity has fashioned the land despite its protected status. He bore witness to the inherent tensions of the countryside, where nature meets development and rural meets urban. His remarkably controlled photographs are a response to the atmosphere in this hybrid landscape.
A publication co-published by the MBAL and the Parc du Doubs accompanies the exhibitionand is available at the MBAL. | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Norfolk + Thymann, Shroud, Glacier du Rhône, Suisse, 2018, © Courtesy of the artists / Project Pressure | | | | | Alt.+1000 Photography festival | | | | | | | 1 - 22 September 2019 | | | | Vernissage: Sunday, September 1 at 1.00 pm | | | | | | | | | | | | | Festival venues: LA BRÉVINE LAC DES TAILLÈRES | Lac des Taillères - 2406 La Brévine
LA CHAUX-DU-MILIEU FERME DU GRAND-CACHOT | Le Cachot - 2405 La Chaux-du-Milieu
MUSÉE DES BEAUX-ARTS | Marie-A.-Calame 6 - 2400 Le Locle | | | | In September, MBAL invites you to visit the Alt.+1000 contemporary photography festival being held in three different venues. MBAL has formed a partnership with this festival renowned for exhibitions of contemporary photography with mountain themes. The museum, through its exhibitions focusing on landscape and its representation in historical and contemporary photography, is the first of the three venues taking part in the Alt.+1000 festival. To extend this focus on the landscape, MBAL invites visitors to explore the two other sites involved in the festival: the Grand-Cachot-de-Vent farm, a superb 16th century building located in La Chaux-du-Milieu, and Lake Taillères. This photographic journey taking place in three locations will allow visitors to fully experience the landscape in the imposing natural setting of the Neuchâtel mountains, at an altitude of 1,000 metres. | | | | | | | | | | © Arnaud Teicher, Col d’Izoard, 2360m, 2014 | | | | | | 2019 Edition
Whether by climbing mountains, planting a cross or building a refuge or working the steep land, man has left his mark on the peaks for centuries and this footprint is at the centre of the next and fifth edition of the festival. The exhibition held at the Grand-Cachot-de-Vent farm will be divided into 4 themes: The topography of the summits, which is synonymous with tourist getaways for some, while it is a matter of survival for others, notably migrants, will be illustrated through the first part entitled "Traverser les montagnes" (Crossing mountains). The second part of the exhibition "Occuper les montagnes" (Occupying mountains) is centred around the peaks and the use made of them, from peasants to skiers, as well as NASA’s explorations of the mountains of Mars. To follow on from the first two themes, "Déplacer les montagnes" (Moving mountains) will display the works of artists who play with the mountain images. Finally, the exhibition will end with a selection of books by Swiss photographers based on the Alps, with the theme "Observer les montagnes" (Observing mountains).
Less than 10 kilometres away from Grand-Cachot-de-Vent, Lake Taillères will host an international project created by Project Pressure, a collective of artists and scientists. At the centre of the "Siberia of Switzerland," the exhibition will show the ultimate footprint man has left on the mountains: global warming. Since 2008, the collective has been working on documenting climate change, notably the melting glaciers, by organising expeditions around the world. Since the project was launched by Danish photographer Klaus Thymann, thousands of images have been created by leading photographers such as Simon Norfolk, Edward Burtynsky and Richard Mosse. | | | | | | | | | | Monique Jacot, La Forclaz, val d’Hérens, 1985 © Monique Jacot - Fotostiftung Schweiz | | | | | | Previous editions
For many people, Alt.+1000 refers to the quaint village of Rossinière, where the festival has taken place from 2008 to 2015 in barns, chalets and on walking trails, always on a mountain theme.
Rossinière is indeed an amazing setting but the work exhibited was not just about beautiful images. Mainly highlighting contemporary photography, the festival questioned notions of territory and landscape through documentary and visual language. Matthieu Gafsou, Simon Norfolk, Penelope Umbrico and Edgar Martins all exhibited there.
This year, Alt.+1000 moves from the Pays d’Enhaut to the Neuchâtel mountains. As in Rossinière, the event offers art and nature lovers, as well as families, a photographic stroll through a remarkable landscape. | | | | | | unsubscribe here
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© 19 Jun 2019 photo-index UG (haftungsbeschränkt)
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