Facets of the Rhone: when the Rhone goes to Paris

The Rhone is being hung on the railings of the Luxembourg Gardens, in Paris, on the occasion of an exhibition of 80 photographs, hosted by the Senate from 13 March to 14 July. The river is discovered as if on a journey from the Swiss glacier, from where it springs, to the delta of the Camargue, before it flows into the Mediterranean Sea at kilometre 812.

15 years devoted to photographing the Rhone

To accompany the visitor, Camille Moirenc, a photographer who has always lived in the south of France, presents the fruit of 15 years of reports on and around the River Rhone. More than a work, Camille Moirenc says he has forged “a dialogue with this river of surprising wealth”, through his peregrinations in Switzerland and France on foot, bicycle and even canoe.

His photos show the diversity of the landscapes shaped by the river and also the uses made of it by human beings: hydropower plants, ports and locks for transport, the development of its banks for leisure, farmland irrigated by its water, urban centres along its banks, as well as protected areas for its flora and fauna…

For Camille Moirenc, the aim is to

“Display its strengths and weaknesses as it flows downstream. This allows understanding its importance and the potential dangers that threaten it. It’s up to us to know how to preserve it.”

A binational exhibition, supported by IFGR

Rivers link territories and countries. Transnational basins cover half the surface area of the continents and accommodate 40% of the world’s population. Thus, it makes sense to present the Rhone in a binational context. The exhibition offered by the Senate therefore brings together around Camille Moirenc, the Swiss cantons of Valais, Vaud and Geneva; the Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR), operator of the River Rhone from the Swiss border to the Mediterranean; and Initiatives for the Future of Great Rivers (IFGR). The publishing house Actes Sud is also a partner.

Crédit photo © Camille Moirenc