Description

Silver portrait of the lord of the Valais Alps, in Switzerland. The Matterhorn appears triumphant from the assaults of an autumn storm. The sun illuminates its eastern face through the last mists that cling to the rocks. The snow that covers its northern face reveals its features. Through the contrasts it creates, it reveals numerous details and abstract patterns that make us rediscover the mountain. Contemplating the photograph in large format is like exploring the Matterhorn in a new light. The journey is unique and always different.

In the center of the picture, the Hörnli ridge stands side by side in light and shadow. Opened by Edward Whymper in 1865, it is the easiest way to access the summit. How can one imagine, in front of the verticality of this ridge which outlines the immensity of the Matterhorn, that one could climb it? At the bottom of the photograph is the Hörnli refuge, and we can see the Solvay bivouac along the ridge. Tiny traces of man lost in the infinite grandeur of the mountains.

I took this vertical photograph of the Matterhorn in 2022, after a difficult summer for the glaciers. The Matterhorn glacier has new crevasses every year and is constantly receding. As a mountain photographer, I am torn between the sadness of witnessing the inevitable disappearance of such masterpieces of nature and my artistic enthusiasm for such renewed beauty. Because the evolution of the glaciers, which are detached from the ground, amplifies the grandeur of summits. And this is the whole purpose of my testimony. To immortalize the most beautiful creations of nature and to highlight the celestial presence of the high mountains. On this work, I chose to transcribe it by soft contrasts. The silver tones underline, through a muffled light, the serene power of the Matterhorn.