Beyond the Frame 70/

A Postcard from Perpignan and the Visa pour l’Image International Festival of Photojournalism.

Visa pour l’Image

I’m in the south of France for the annual Visa pour l’Image International Festival of Photojournalism.

Perhaps the most famous event celebrating photojournalism, Visa pour l’Image (literal translation: Passport to the Image), has been held each year since 1989.

“Let the train take the strain”

From Geneva to Perpignan.

I endorse that 1980s British Rail advertising slogan and appreciate the train taking the strain. I think an accurate measure of a functioning society is a well-run railway system. Increasingly, it’s a much more civilised way to travel than the stress and discomfort of flying.

The fact that it’s possible to enjoy an Alpine view at lunchtime and be a stone’s throw from the Spanish border in time for dinner is impressive. No customs checks, no security barriers, just great views and fresh coffee.

Letting the train take the strain

I watched a film. I read a book. I had some lunch. But mostly I looked out of the window, watching the landscape slowly transition from snowy peaks through dense forests to sun-drenched plains.

I counted river crossings (more than 10), medieval towns (dozens), and solitary, cotton wool clouds (one).

A Postcard from Perpignan

There is much to see and do in Perpignan during the opening week of the festival. So many exhibitions, events, meetings and screenings. But as this is my first visit, I took a couple of hours to wander and orientate myself before immersing myself in the festival.

Here are some quick impressions (made and swiftly processed with my Kodachrome profiles on my phone.)

A sliver of sky

Laundry day

Shopping

Doorstep thoughts

Evening Festival Screenings

Each evening at 9.30pm, festivalgoers gather in the quadrangle of the medieval Campo Santo for a screening.

Walking through the cloisters to the evening screening

Each screening begins with a selection of news images from that day, compiled from news agencies around the world.

The programme opens with a look back at the past year. Two months are featured each evening. We will have seen summaries of all twelve months by the end of the week.

Then a collection of 15–20 photo essays are shared, each one accompanied by an expertly made soundtrack.

This short video gives a very quick impression, with a short excerpt of the summary from September and October 2024, plus a few seconds of a photo essay, Ireland Fishing by Finbarr O’Reilly, just to give an sense of the location and ambience. Honestly, I was so engaged with the screenings, I forgot to record more video.

Here are my quick takeaways in uncharacteristically efficient bullet-points.

• The photo essay screenings are, as you’d expect, expertly curated. The accompanying soundtracks are so thoughtfully compiled that they really elevate the images. You can find a playlist from each day’s screening on Spotify.

• Watching the photo essays from around the world, covering a diverse range of subjects, is a profound reminder that there are journalists steadfastly doing their best to share aspects of the world in which we live. They’re not seeking fortune or fame, they have a desire to ask, simply, “Please, look at this.” Honestly, it’s humbling.

• Being one of a crowd of – I don’t know, perhaps 2,000 people – watching the stories unfold in hushed silence was surprisingly uplifting. In a world of near zero attention spans and nonchalant inattention, it felt almost like an act of resistance.
  I don’t wish to over-romanticise it – though I might – but being with a group of people giving their full attention to the hard-won and often uncompromising images somewhat restored my faith in human nature.

Perpignan rooftops at sunset

Online Exhibitions

There’s a great deal more to see and do in Perpignan this week. I’ll do my best to share some highlights but you can see some of the online exhibitions on the Visa pour l’Image website (you’ll need to create an account).

Here are three that I recommend:

The Fall of Assad by Salwan Georges

People with opposition flags celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. Aleppo Citadel, 11 December 2024

Reshaping home: Indonesia’s capital migration by Cynthia Boll

Muara Baru’s main street has sunk over a metre in the past four years, becoming an ‘inverted aquarium’ as water struggles to flow out. North Jakarta, Java, 9 February 2015

Cynthia is the winner of the 2024 Canon Female Photojournalist Grant.

American Madness by Adam Gray

Gotham Cheer, a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender adult cheerleading team perform during the Brooklyn Pride Parade. Brooklyn, New York City, 8 June 2024

An aside about flags

Upon proofreading this edition (yes, proofreading does take place), I see that I’ve selected two images of people with flags. Perhaps it’s a subconscious response to the confected right-wing nonsense currently taking place in the UK where people are painting mini-roundabouts with the red cross of St. George and attaching English flags to street lamps and telegraph poles.

I say “people” are on this xenophobic flag-bender but it’s almost exclusively bald, white, middle-aged men. As somebody who inescapably identifies with those characteristics, I object.

In any case, here are two examples of flags being flown for more legitimate reasons.

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And finally…

I leave you with this reassuring quote from Jean-François Leroy’s introduction to the Visa pour l’Image festival programme.

“We will continue doing what we have always done: showcasing the best in photojournalism. Nuanced and verified information from the field, not from social media; images made by humans, not by generative AI.”

Until next time, go well.

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Directory: Beyond the Frame newsletter archive.

Resources: Recommended books, films, gear, media etc.

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