The following series of photographs by Nicolas Havette were taken during the rehearsal of an intercultural dance collaboration between Chumvan Sodhachivy, a Cambodian dance who specializes in the Apsara dance style, and the French dancer/choreographer Sébastien Ramirez. The performers were brought together in the context of the Phnom Penh Hip Hop Festival and had a week to prepare the piece. The concept of superimposed images came initially as a response to a technical lighting constraint before permeating the entire series. To Havette, this was a reminder that technical constraints can often be the source of artistic creation. “This may be somewhat of a modernist approach to photography” remarks Havette, “but I think (photographic) technique should be considered a creative source that has equal bearing on the meaning of the work.” All images © copyright of Nicolas Havette.

1

2

       

3 - 4

5

6

7

8

       

9 - 10

11

12

       

13 - 14

15

16

       

17 - 18

19

20

About the Photographer
Nicolas Havette trained at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de la Photographie d’Arles, France. Since 2003, he has presented work at a range of international events including Nuit Blanche in Paris, the Angkor festival of photography in Cambodia, the Arles International Photography Festival and more. In 2006, he was appointed ‘Professor of photography’ for the department of media in the Afghan Parliament in Kabul.

Related links
• Professional Portfolio: see more photos by Nicolas Havette.
• sebastienramirez.com: visit the website of choreographer, Sebastien Ramirez.

The first series of photos to launch the new Theatre in Pictures project is by Alan Eglinton, a Paris-based freelance photographer. The subject is the Japanese Butoh company, Sankai Juku, and their celebrated work Unetsu – The Egg stands out of Curiosity, first performed in 1986. The two kanji that form the word ‘Unetsu’ (卵熱) translate as egg/ovum and heat/fever. The company was founded in 1975 by Amagatsu Ushio and the name ‘Sankai Juku’ translates as ’studio/school between mountain and sea’. Sankai Juku’s work is an important component of the ‘Second Wave’ of Butoh since it began in the 1960s. The photos included here are of a 2006 production at the Vaison-la-Romaine Dance Festival, France. All images are © copyright of Alan Eglinton.

      

1 - 2

      

3 - 4

      

5 - 6

      

7 - 8

9

About the photographer
Born in 1980, Alan Eglinton is a freelance photographer living in Paris and working for publications such as Le Monde and the literary magazine Le Matricule des Anges. He’s developing an on-going photo project about the once-united North and South Korea. www.alaneglinton.com.

Related links
• Alan Eglinton: professional photography portfolio.
• Sankai Juku: official company website.