Jean Guichard is famous for his photo of the Mare's lighthouse where you can see the keeper on his doorstep and a huge wave circling the lighthouse from behind. A photo taken from a helicopter on December 21, 1989. But before taking an interest in lighthouses (he has written many books about them), Jean Guichard is above all a press photographer whose subjects do not bring him close to the sea.
It was with Eric Tabarly that he discovered the maritime domain. In 1979, the Sygma agency for which he worked entrusted him with a report on the construction of the foil trimaran Paul Ricard. The construction of this aluminium beast took place in Cherbourg. Jean Guichard will accompany the sponsor Eric Tabarly on the shipyard for 3 weeks. From this meeting and this shared moment of life will be born a complicity between the two men.
The sailor was a champion communicator. Jean Guichard will succeed in taking pictures of him over the next 17 years, pictures that present Eric Tabarly in his intimacy. Jean Guichard will have an ally: Jacqueline Tabarly, the sailor's wife. She will quickly understand the importance of images for her husband's communication.
If the images in the book are often strong, presenting Eric Tabarly in often incongruous situations, the captions written by the photographer provide some often delightful explanations. Vincent Guigueno's texts are there to remind us of the historical context of the photos.
This book is not a complete portrait of Eric Tabarly. Indeed, it begins with the construction of Paul Ricard. The whole Pen Duick adventure and famous victories are already over. On the other hand, the adventure of the foil trimaran is very widely documented.
The end of the book with the advent of ocean racing lacks a little interest. Part of the book is also taken from the family archives (photo album) which have no real place in this story.
What is really strong in this book is the meeting between the photographer and the sailor, the intimacy created between the two men and the resulting photos. We can only thank the friends of the photographer and Jacqueline Tabarly for motivating Jean Guichard to publish these photos.
Editions de la Martinière
24.6 x 29.2 cm
240 pages
35.00 euros
