The Conservatoire du Littoral, a French public organisation dedicated to the protection of natural areas on coasts and lakeshores, celebrated its 40th anniversary on 10 July 2015, during the Rencontres d’Arles. This was a lucky coincidence: the Conservatoire has had a fruitful relationship with photography for 30 years. The latest acquisitions of the Conservatoire du Littoral also include large prints by Massimo Vitali. For the first time, the beaches are empty! Edith Roux gives us her polyptychs of the corniche des Maures, from land to sea, photographed in 2014, and Olivier Mériel presents an unprecedented series of twilight images of the D-day beaches in Normandy. In addition to these four artists, a selection from the thousand or so original prints by 30 french and foreign photographers that the conservatoire has gradually added to its collection is projected to show its richness and diversity.
Line Lavesque