Thomas Rousset – Prabérians

Rousset uses the agricultural working village of his childhood, on the border of France and Switzerland, to examine the totemic and ritualistic aspects of rural life. Over twelve years, Thomas Rousset has probed every corner of his family village to create a surrealistic yet tender docu­fiction of its inhabitants. As small­-scale agricultural villages appear stuck in time or close to extinction, Rousset catapults Prabert into a fantastical, hallucina­tory world, creating heightened moments of absurdity amongst intimate portraits and observations of daily village life. In his creative collaborations with his fellow Prabérians, Rousset engages with deep traditions of rural eccentricity and a dignified non-conformity that unites and binds communities against the harsh realities of everyday agricultural life. Rousset mixes these exaggerated scenarios with striking landscapes and naturalistic portraits, hinting at the creative potential locked within the land and its inhabitants, and the daily dance between work and play, solemnity and joy. Thomas Rousset (b.1984) lives and works between Lausanne (CH) and Paris (FR). Using staging as a device playing on the edge of reality and fiction, his work examines the totemic and ritualistic aspects of everyday life. His work has been exhibited in Amsterdam, Bienne, Berne, Cologne, Zurich, Genève and Arles, and featured in magazines such as FOAM and Blink Magazine. Previous publications include 164° On the Equator in collaboration with Charles Negre (Études, 2015), and Waska Tatay in collaboration with Raphaël Verona (Idpure Éditions, 2014). 160pp, 240 × 330 mm, 100 photos Swiss-bound buckram hardcover Text by Felix Bazalgette in English and French ISBN 978-1-912719-39-6 November 2022 Press: Le Monde The Guardian The Observer British Journal of Photography Creative Review Wallpaper Booooooom Popeye Thomas Rousset in conversation, Paris Photo × The Eyes Artist Talks 2022 Paris book launch Thursday 24 November 2022 6–8pm, Librairie Yvon Lambert Marseille book launch Saturday 17 December 2022, 15.00–19.00