about the work

The Dent du Géant (4013m) is one of the most emblematic 4000 of the Mont Blanc massif. At the French-Italian border of the Aosta Valley, the slender needle overhangs the glacier bearing its name.

The photography of this summit goes back to 2019. Exceptional conditions allowed me to crystallize a unique moment. After a violent snowstorm, the Dent du Géant rips the skies and comes out of a haze looking like an ocean. The clouds advance, like immense waves coming down on the summit. The play of the lights in the clouds gives the illusion of big sprays. The universe of the mountain is transformed into marine world. This rock is similar to a lighthouse guiding the mountaineers: it indicates the way of summit.

The Dent du Géant remains a classic of mountaineering. Its access is easy, the mechanical lifts are close; and the summit is not of great difficulty. However, this photograph reminds me of the power of nature. The point, separated from the ground, lost in the immensity of the sea of clouds seems celestial, distant, untouchable. It is enthroned in the clouds, up there, on the border of the mystical. It imposes respect, humble and silent admiration.

This mountain inspires me a lot. It is also surprising. Its evocative name leaves room for dreams, for mythological epics: perhaps ancient giants reigned in the massif in the past and this summit would be their testimony... the imagination must remain free, totally free... like the little virgin that we see at summit.

This photograph will satisfy the lovers of verticality. I tried to show this needle in its most slender form, the most tapered. It is a fragile balance that I capture; that between the frozen face, precise and clear, and the impetuous, troubled sea.

It is a rare work. Since its realization, I have not had the opportunity to find such conditions. A simple shot, but powerful.