La Samaritaine supports young photographers

For the second consecutive year, La Samaritaine is exhibiting the work of the ten young photographers selected for its Prix de la jeune photographie competition. The show offers a unique tour of the neighborhood around the iconic building in a hundred photos.

Ma Samaritaine 2014 once again gave carte blanche to ten talents, all students or graduates of the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts, inviting them to share photographic visions inspired by the former department store. Unlike the 2013 edition, the young photographers did not focus their lenses inside the building, but rather on the exterior and the surroundings, proposing their own personal interpretation of an eternal symbol of Paris that has been immortalized by such renowned photographers as Eugène Boubat, Willy Ronis and Brassaï.

Over a hundred photos by the young photographers are being shown in the former La Samaritaine No. 3 store until December 21, 2014. Their ten different visions range from realism to abstract, from flashes of color to graphic black and white, and from a documentary approach to poetic chance discoveries.

The winner of the La Samaritaine Prix de la jeune photographie, chosen from among the ten artists whose work is being exhibited, receives 15,000 euros. This year’s jury is co-chaired by Antoine Arnault, CEO of Berluti and a member of the LVMH Board, and photographer Sarah Moon. The jury selected Mats Gustau as the 2014 winner. His achromatic photos illustrate the juxtaposition of history and future in the “La Samaritaine  neighborhood”. His ambitious and original work resonates perfectly with the renovation project for the iconic brand.