Paolo Verzone

Born in 1967 in Turin and living in Paris, Paolo Verzone has been a member of the VU' Agency since 2003.
For 30 years, he has photographed the populations that surround him, with rigor and eclecticism. His photographic practice has gone from press commissions to personal documentaries. His photographs aim to reflect the multiplicity and singularity of each individual.
After photographing the bathers of the Mediterranean shores in his series Seeuropeans, Paolo Verzone published in 2014 his book Cadets, gathering portraits of students from military schools in Europe.
Paolo Verzone was awarded the World Press Photo in 2000, 2009 and 2015. His photographs have been included in several collections including those of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the National Library of France and the Instituto Nazionale della Grafica in Rome.

In Deauville as part of the Planche(s) Contact festival

Paolo Verzone develops photographic series that question our society and the representation of its leisure activities. He produces strict portraits in a documentary tradition. For Planche(s) Contact 2016, Paolo Verzone returned to Deauville, which he already knew, to meet those he calls "Les travailleurs de la Mer". An inventory, individual portraits or by small groups, to reveal the diversity of jobs related to the sea and the beach of Deauville. From the fisherman to the ice cream vendor, from the marina captain to the beach umbrella renter... A diversity of trades and individuals, all presented in their truth and singularity.

Paolo Verzone on his exhibition Workers of the Sea:
"From my first visit to Deauville, I discovered a city that functions almost perfectly. Just as a watch works day after day with precision and regularity without one knowing the subtle cogs, Deauville seems to move forward in this way: a well-oiled mechanism.
Of course, nothing would be like this without the impetus, energy and will of the people who live and work there. Deauville is a seaside resort, a vacation spot, a weekend destination: a large part of its activities are organized around the sea from June to September.
Port workers, lifeguards, lifeguards, stores selling all kinds of seaside equipment (from balls to fishing rods and bathing suits), beach preparation (installation of deckchairs and umbrellas), beach restaurants, cooks, waiters...

I chose to photograph these men and women who during the summer season participate in the "success" of the season. With their complicity, I fixed a moment of their activity, without interrupting the regular movement, a short suspended moment.
I would like to warmly thank all the people who gave me a little of their time to capture a moment of their lives, during a season in Deauville."