EDITION 2012

It was with the greatest of pleasure and curiosity that I accepted the kind invitation to participate, as jury president, in the Boutographies annual selection. I discovered, first of all, a quantity of dossiers sent from the four corners of Europe, whose overall quality equalled that which I had experienced, for example, when I was artistic director of the jury for the HBC photography prize. This demonstrates the dimension taken by the now indispensable Montpellier event. To participate in the Boutographies, for the amateur or professional photographer a like, has become a logical act, given the seriousness and the artistic engagement of their juries over the years.

In particular this experience has enabled me to observe how the Boutographies play an exemplary critical role in the evaluation of contemporary photography. To examine each dossier in a collegiate fashion, during the annual jury selection, nourished by the active experience of other members; gallery owners, critics, creative professionals, leads each year to a critical vision unique in contemporary practice. This plurality, the guarantee of an eclectic choice, fiercely deliberated, gives the Boutographies candidature and the resulting annual exhibition in the Pavillon Populaire, a seriousness and reliability which confirms their uncontested place in the panorama of French photography.

Between a resolute engagement, for over a year now, for a photographic patrimony within the programming of the Pavillon Populaire, and the effervescence, via the Boutographies, of the most contemporary of images, Montpellier is positioned at the heart of an ambitious and innovative photographic showcase.

Gilles Mora

Artistic Director of the Pavillion Populaire for the town of Montpellier