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View of the exhibition "The rustle of water" by Pierrot Men at the French Institute of Antananarivo. © IF of Madagascar

The famous Malagasy photographer Pierrot Men exhibits in the capital of the Big Island. To the public of the French Institute, in Antananarivo, he presents "The rustling of water", a series of photos in the background of sound taken in the north and south of the Big Island where water is at the center of the concerns of population.

Under the eye of Pierrot Men, two extremes: the incessant rains of the north-east and the drought of the Great South of Madagascar. Among the twenty works on display, immense landscapes, often arid and mysterious in which the human seems very fragile.

" In general, I really get back to the subject, to the people. But this time, I'm a little far to better see the nature. So, people are tiny on it. I do not know how to explain that, but these are things I have not even planned to do. It was on the spot that I saw that it was the only way to express this kind of emptiness, of drought. You really had to show the space. "

Photo from Pierrot Men's "The Rustling of Water" exhibition at the French Institute of Antananarivo, Madagascar. © Pierrot Men

Compositions and framing

Black and white, the trademark of Pierrot Men, or in color, the clichés suggest compositions and frames that recall the painting, his first love. But it is the intuition of the photographer who guides him:

" There is a famous photo I took in Sarodrano, for example, where they are really digging the sand to get some water, because the sea is right next to it. There, at least, they can have water even if they still have to boil it, of course, but it's water. In this photo, it's the light on the sand that struck me a lot because this strong light, for me, really represents the hardness of life in these regions. If only we could get water from the north to the south, it would solve a lot of problems. "

Images that strike and retrace the lives of people to whom speech is rarely given.

► P ierrot Men: The rustling of water , exposure to the French Institute of Madagascar, until 18 January 2020. Free admission. In partnership with the NGO Medair which intervenes in the North-East and the Great South of Madagascar.

► To read also: Finally recognition for the arts of Madagascar?