Vegetables and Men; A photographic series by Joëlle Dollé

" The first time I saw salsify was when I received an organic basket! I had never seen lemongrass before, never eaten Jerusalem artichokes, never cooked carrot tops... My lack of culture was quite impressive! It seemed to me that all of these vegetables deserved to be re-introduced. I wanted to bring a fresh perspective to these vegetables that are a part of our everyday life. I became engrossed in photographing them as 'life portraits'."
~~ Joëlle Dollé


Vegetables and Men, an exhibition and a book release.

With Vegetables and Men, French photographer Joëlle Dollé depicts some hundred anonymous and French personalities with vegetables. The exhibition and the book remind us of our relationship with vegetables (food, culture, history, language....). The objective is to find pleasure in the way we view our daily lives, and simplicity in our relationship to life. These photographs challenge our senses and are open to all.

Joëlle Dollé is a photographer and portraitist. She worked as an artistic director before choosing to devote herself to her passion for photography in 1998. She created and designed a collection of children's books entitled 'Histoire de voir' from her photographs of animals. In 2008, Dollé tackled the way illness and handicap are perceived, shedding light on the individual rather than focusing on their physical impairment or their difference. Two great exhibitions were carried out, one with the association AIDES and the other with Toit Citoyen de l'Arche de ls Défense.
Dollé's approach delves into the uniqueness of each individual, but also evokes the unity between all beings. With her series of portraits, she questions our relationship to others and to ourselves and, with Vegetables and Men, our link to nature.

JOËLLE DOLLÉ: Vegetables and Men

Anne Mondet ' sweet potato' © Joëlle Dollé

 Aurelie Cantin ' asparagus' © Joëlle Dollé

 Rodolphe Briand 'mushrooms' © Joëlle Dollé

 Claude Bureaux ' chicory' © Joëlle Dollé

 Alain Baraton 'bay leaves' © Joëlle Dollé

 Nikola Karabatic 'melon' © Joëlle Dollé

 Catherine 'pumpkin' © Joëlle Dollé

 Alain Passard 'horseradish' © Joëlle Dollé

 Michel Onfray 'rutabaga' © Joëlle Dollé

 Jerome Guyot 'tomatoes' © Joëlle Dollé

Courtesy of the artist 

Vegetables and Men, Portraits by Joëlle Dollé 

On exhibit at Versailles, Potager du Roi

June 24 - September 9, 2012
Paris, Chai de Bercy
October 1st - December 31, 2012

The book is published by Éditions du Chêne

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