Interview in english and greek by Ifigeneia Sakkou

Greek version

“I’m happy when my world resonates with those who appreciate my work.
This shared feeling, this complicity, touches me because it touches others”

The famous photographer Christophe Jacrot is hosted on photologio.gr, on the occasion of the recent edition of his photo book “Lost in the Beauty of bad weather”. He talks to Ifigenia Sakkou about his photographic beginning and how a change in weather inspired him and took off his career. In our very interesting interview, he shares with us his experiences from his travels around the world, the special conditions he photographs, his thoughts on climate change, what he wants to communicate to the public with his photographs, his future plans.

Monsieur Jacrot, it is a great honor and priviledge for us in Photologio.gr, to host your distinguished photographic work and to present it to the greek audience.

Photography entered in your life in adolescence. A small film camera, a darkroom in the basement of your house and a participation to a photo Safari in the beginning. Then you started creating short films, but in the absence of a screenwriter, as you have mentioned, you are making a shift to a new profession, totally irrelevant to photography. Suddently, or maybe not so, at the age of 45, you peak up the photo thread again, and after attending a four-month program in photojournalism, a travel guide company assigns to you your first photographic job. What was the thing that initially draw you to photography at the early age, and what was the one that brought you back to it after 27 years?  How different was your approach to it the second time?
At 45, after an exciting photojournalism internship, you’re obviously more mature! However, my approach is still very instinctive, while being demanding of myself

Christophe.Jacrot – VERCORS

A change in the parisian weather literatelly took off your career. Is it correct to say that your famous series “Paris in the Rain” was a result of following your instinct and quicky respond with agilily to the new cirumstances? Do you think that above qualities are important for a photographer?
This “Paris in the Rain” series was born of both hazard and a spirit of contradiction. The client was demanding to have sunny photos, which was understandable on his part, but annoyed me at the same time. That’s how I started this series. I also supplied 400 photos for the guidebook. They were very happy.

Christophe.Jacrot – INDE

I imagine you, watching on a daily basis the weather forcasts, and with a suitcase in your hands, travelling around the world to find the ideal scenery for your next photo shooting. Is this somehow the way you work? How do you plan your series and from where do you drive your inspiration? Even though you don’t stage your photographs, as you have mentioned what Kind of preparation are you making in order to achieve the desired results? 
I often look at the forecasts from the comfort of my bed, in the morning or at night. I have two approaches: Either I settle on a particular area and wait for favorable weather conditions (e.g. NYC) for me, or I look at where the storms will occur and see if that area interests me (e.g. the Italian piedmont, Japan…).

Christophe.Jacrot – FEROE

Do you use any special photographic equipment for the demanding weather conditions? What are the precautions you are taking for yourself?  Have you ever been at a risky situation yourself or the shooting?
Nothing extraordinary, the camera is protected by a transparent bag. The real danger is thermal and hydrometric shocks. There’s a huge risk of condensation! Even inside the camera and optics. You have to be vigilant and manage transitions.
It was an unforgettable experience. A ghost town, somewhere in Siberia, built for nickel mining during the Soviet era. Negative thirty Celsius for eight months a year, Stalinist-style buildings standing at attention, the city is extremely photogenic, but off-limits to foreigners. It was no small task and took all the expertise of my Russian wife, Annouchka, to obtain a special permit for a very short trip. Immediately upon arriving, I threw myself into an epic storm, as only Siberia can produce. I lasted twelve hours outside in very strong winds, unable to stop because of the power of the place. But the payoff was four days in bed with high fever.

Christophe.Jacrot – ISLANDE

Looking at your photos, one can observe the leading role of the weather phenomenon. For instance in the series of “Wet Scotland”, “White Iceland” “Norilsk”(Siberia) the snow, rain or storm are starring and creating a particular atmosphere. Before the power of the nature all the rest included in your frame, buildings, the modern megacities, living beings, seem fragile and defenseless. Is this really your intention, to show to us the majesty of nature?
Absolutely! And global warming is proving me right. But at the same time, bad weather is essential to life. It’s a very interesting paradox.

Christophe.Jacrot – DROME

What is the role of the living beings in your photos?
Good question, I keep them at a distance, and at the same time I want them there, without being systematic about it. We’re fragile, even if we pretend to dominate everything.

Christophe.Jacrot – ISLANDE

Watching your series “Icebergs” I am thinking of the climate change we are facing globally, the last decades, leading to the faster melting of ice. Does this change affect your work in terms of the criteria you select and or prioritize the potential locations for shooting, Has this change altered your plans or added more difficulties?
I removed it from my site, too classic. On the other hand, global warming is accentuating climate extremes. More heat, more rain, more dryness… The melting of glaciers is less my subject, but a consequence of climate change.

Christophe.Jacrot – NEW YORK

Please share with us the story behind the series of “New York in Black”
I went to NYC for a storm. It arrived, but it was mainly the wind that was so violent (with little rain) Finally it was quite dangerous to go out, and police made people go home. I stayed in the hotel. It was only when the weather calmed down ,I heard from a friend who lived on 25th streets, that they were in total darkness. I went there and it was a shock! You can’t imagine what is a city without any electricity, no light anywhere, nothing, except the districts who still had power around Manhattan. I went to buy a tripod in a hurry, and 3 nights in a row I went to take my photos. I was lucky enough to live in an area unaffected by the blackout.

Christophe.Jacrot – HONGKONG

You have once said that “There are two ways of photographing the world: Capturing its horror or sublimating it” Please tell us what is it that you pursue with your shots, what do want to share with us with your photos?
I don’t pretend to do anything, just to touch people as much as possible…
I try to create something new with the illusion of reality that photography offers. I like my visual world to be self-sufficient. These are neither documentary photos nor conceptual photos. Rather, they are images in which time and space come together. And I’m happy when my world resonates with those who appreciate my work.
This shared feeling, this complicity, touches me because it touches others. There is no calculation, no discourse—it is simply impulse. Behind it, obviously, there is a great determination and a certain amount of work.

Christophe.Jacrot – CHICAGO

What is it that makes a shot interesting? How do you manage to remain creative and from where do you draw your inspiration?
Good question, at the moment with my divorce, I’ve lost my bearings a bit … it’ll come back!
An interesting photo? Difficult to answer, it’s ultimately a question of choice, choice of location, choice of light, choice of frame, choice of moment, and instinct…

Christophe.Jacrot – LOST

All your photographic books are great luxurious publications, with great numbers of sells worldwide. Your latest book “Lost in the beauty of bad weather” released in November is already a great success. Please share with us some more details about this book.
It’s a commission from a German publisher. The title and cover, the format and paper are the result of a long compromise with them. I’m totally committed to the interior, and insisted on going from 180 pages to 240. They also wanted text, which is a very good idea. For the selection of the photos, I let my graphic designer do all the layout. I just gave him a selection of 300 photos and said to him, do not make a layout by countries, but by sensitivity, secret link between images.
For the photo of the white sheep on the cover, I was lucky to have been able to sleep in the village surrounded by the scenery I had planned to photograph next. Such opportunities are not often the case. One evening, after I had worked all day and needed to retire for the night, I noticed through my window more sheep than usual on the roads. I labored to put my clothes back on; it was 10 p.m. I hurried straight to the center of the village, a location I’d selected earlier, and there, face to face, came across the white sheep, like in a dream

Christophe.Jacrot – PARIS

You are an internationally accomplished photographer. Your works are exhibited in important galleries and art spaces. Major media, newspapers and magazines are paying tributes to your work. What does this success mean to you? Have you ever imagined this development in your career?
I’m not sure I’m as well known as you say, but I have sold a lot! It’s a bit more difficult at the moment. Institutions are ignoring me

Christophe.Jacrot – NORILSK

Please share with us your next plans. What else can we expect from you? Cinema is one of your old loves. Is it perhaps in your plans to return to the film production?
I hope to go to Asia this summer and spend some time there. The trips I had planned for this winter have been postponed until next year. I’m thinking about a documentary. I prefer not to say anything for the moment. I would also like to go away for longer and less often, to reduce my air travel.

Monsieur Jacrot, merci beaucoup pour le grand honneur et le plaisir que notre entretien avec vous, nous a procuré!

Info:
Christophe Jacrot was born in 1960. He is a contemporary photographer, living in Paris. He started taking pictures in his teens, but first became known in the cinema. He directed several short films, most of which won awards. Soon, due to the financial limitations that cinema sometimes imposes, he turns to photography. He was commissioned by an agency of a tourist photo guide for Paris which ended to be the occasion for the production of artistic atmospheric images not only for Paris but also for other major cities such as Hong Kong, Tokyo or Taipei, New York and more recently Iceland and its natural landscapes and coast of Normandy in France. In 2020, the TV channel ARTE released a short report on Christophe Jacrot, edited by journalist Richard Bonnet. His works achieve high sales numbers worldwide and are presented by international galleries and art venues.

Christophe.Jacrot

Exhibitions

• 2023 – Blin + Blin (Paris, France)
• 2022 – Blin + Blin (Paris, France)
• 2019 – Fotofever Paris 2019 with R/G Gallery (Paris, France)
• 2018/2019 – Bellow Zero, Galerie de l’Europe (Paris, France)
• 2017 – Fotofever Paris 2017 with Artistics gallery (Paris, France)
• 2016/2017 – Personal exhibition : Snjór at the Galerie de l’Europe – From 01/12/2016 to 14/01/2017 (Paris, France)
• 2016 – YIA Art Fair (Paris, France)
• 2016 – Galerie de l’Europe, SNJÓR exhibition (Paris, France)
• 2015 – Bruno Gallery (Singapour)
• 2015 – Scope BASEL (Switzerland)
• 2015 – Affordable Art Fair (Hong Kong, China)
• 2015 – Galerie de l’Europe, “Blizzard” exhibition (Paris, France)
• 2014 – Fotofever with Artistics gallery (Paris, France)
• 2014 – Heist Photography (London, UK)
• 2014 – Afforable Art Fair (Hong Kong, China)
• 2014 – Galerie de l’Europe, “New York in Black” exhibition (Paris, France)
• 2013 – Artistry, “Under the Rain” exhibition (Singapour)
• 2013 – Affordable Art Fair (New York, USA)
• 2013 – Asia Contemporary Art Fair (Hong-Kong, China)
• 2013 – Young Gallery – “Black and White” exhibition (Bruxelles, Belgium)
• 2013 – Kunstlicht Gallery, “In the Mood for Rain” exhibition (Shangai, China)
• 2013 – Affordable Art Fair (Hong-Kong, China)
• 2012 – Affordable Art Fair (Singapour)
• 2012 – Galerie de l’Europe, “Neige” exhibition (Paris, France)
• 2011 – Istanbul Galeria Soda (Istanbul, Turkey)
• 2011 – Artemiss Contemporary & Yellow Cube Gallery “Grand Opening” (Tokyo, Japan)
• 2010 – Artemiss Contemporary “Contrasting China” (Hong Kong, China)
• 2010 – Galerie de l’Europe (Paris, France)
• 2010 – Galerie du Chapitre (Nîmes, France)
• 2009 – Galerie de l’Europe (Paris, France)
• 2008 – Le Lucernaire (Paris, France)
• 2008 – Galerie de l’Europe (Paris, France)
• 2008 – Little Big Gallery (Paris, France)
• 2007 – Le Lucernaire (Paris, France)

Publications

• “L’hiver magnifié dans un beau livre au format cinémascope” by Clément Bellanger, AD Magazine, 2022.
• New York in Black, photography book, h’Artpon Editions, 2017. 60 pages
• Snjór, photography book. h’Artpon Editions, 2016. 70 pages
• Météores, photography book. h’Artpon Editions, 2015. 140 pages
• “Lost in the beauty of bad weather” by Christophe Jacrot, photography book. TeNeues editions, 2023.237 pages

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