Memory of the Glacier de Moiry

Superb black-and-white photograph taken in 2012 at val d’Anniviers, high above the Moiry hut in the Swiss Valais. In the foreground, the Moiry glacier reveals its beauty. Its seracs bask in the first rays of the sun. Then our gaze meets its break, a veritable wall of ice. From the plateau, with its huge crevasses, we ascend to summit des Bouquetins, a magnificent crescent of snow with generous, inspiring curves, culminating at 3469 metres above sea level. In the background, the Grand Cornier and Dent Blanche, at 4353 metres, seem to form one gigantic mountain.

I was just discovering the Alps when I created this work. At the time, I was in search of shapes, light, perspective and dimension. I was already passionately fond of the high mountains, their grandiose panoramas so different from the landscapes of my native Belgium. We were in the middle of summer, as I was neither equipped nor trained to climb summits in the middle of winter. With experience, I gradually broadened my horizons, and now I'm able to tackle harsh winter storms.

With this photograph of summit des Bouquetins and Grand Cornier, I wanted to capture the splendour of the Moiry glacier. At sunrise, the blue sky makes the mountains glow. I love the graphic beauty of this painting, where lines mingle with curves to highlight the grandeur of this almost lunar landscape. What a thrill to find myself back in the Alps of yesterday! In summer, Dent Blanche was still covered in snow, and the glaciers were far more imposing than they are today. They are the first victims of global warming, and the acceleration of their retreat in recent years is staggering. I realize that in taking this portrait, without realizing it, I was immortalizing a historic moment. summits were just beginning their metamorphosis. A mountain with a Himalayan air that future generations will not be able to admire. This is what my art as a mountain photographer is all about. To perpetuate the heritage of a world whose transformation is inescapable, and to share it with you. So that we never forget the past splendours of the celestial kingdom erected at the summit of the Alps.