War-Torn Ukraine
A limited edition photo book of 1,000 signed copies by Pierre Toutain-Dorbec
In Ukraine, Pierre has once again taken up his camera to bear witness to war. His photographs will undoubtedly become part of the collective memory of the Russian invasion and its consequences for civilians. His photographs show people who will be forced to live with war for decades to come. This war may change Ukrainians in ways that are difficult to predict. They are, however, more than victims; they are survivors who give us a glimpse into human strength and humanity when faced with death and destruction—people seeking comfort in music, arts, and relationships with their family, neighbors and complete strangers. The photographs show that life with war also means life with marriages, births, work, and all that life can offer. As such the photographs are a message of hope and an invitation to pause and reflect on each page. Phuong PHAM AND Patrick VINCK, Directors of Education and Research, Harvard Humanitarian Initiative and Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School and Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health.
ISBN 978-1-7360311-9-3
Colors of Distress and Chaos - Ukraine
Pierre Toutain-Dorbec’s series of photographs depicting the Russo-Ukrainian war is a haunting portrayal of the devastating impact of conflict on humanity. Through his masterful use of light, shadow, faded tints, and the dry plate technique, he conveys the raw emotions of those affected by the invasion with an unflinching intensity. The absence of human presence in the pictures adds to the unsettling feeling that the viewer is witnessing something deeply disturbing. Each image evokes a sense of foreboding and unease, serving as a stark reminder of the chaos and distress that innocent people experience in such a situation. By capturing the emotional toll of conflict, Toutain-Dorbec encourages us to confront the harsh realities and work towards a more peaceful world. One notable aspect of Toutain-Dorbec’s photography is his intentional omission of captions or explanations. Rather than imposing his assessment, the photographer allows each image to stand on its own, inviting the viewer to engage and construct their particular narrative based on their distinct experiences and perspectives. This approach creates a space for a more personal and reflective engagement with the impact of war on human lives. By leaving interpretation up to the observer, Toutain-Dorbec’s work challenges us to consider the individual stories and experiences that are often overlooked in discussions of conflict.
Paperback: 64 pages
ISBN 978-0-9802432-5-3
Dimensions: 5.51 x 0.23 x 8.5 inches
Language: English
Passage of Days
Through a lens starkly, undertake a photographic odyssey into the sun-baked heart of Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains. Spanning the years 1975–1981, Pierre Toutain-Dorbec’s visits with the Imazighen people who live in the Imilchil region, led to a visual record and testament to a pastoral way of life attuned to the cyclical flux of seasons, to the rhythms of nature herself. This exquisite black-and-white collection reflects a chronologically compressed life in the day of the Imazighen, underscored by the interior narratives and silent stories implied in a stunning montage of portraits, while also capturing the grit, symmetry and high-desert mystique of the resident landscape.
ISBN 979-10-90285-56-9
A Season At Monet's Garden
Beyond his technique, beyond his palette, what Monet brought to Giverny was his vision. In the same way, beyond her camera and experience, the unique vision that Claudia Toutain-Dorbec brought there shines through in her lavish creations of color and form. "Personal, novel, philosophical, poetic" - these are the ways French curator Nicole Zapata-Aubé sees Claudia's work. And they are the links as well between her own photographic artistry and the beauty that both inspired and was brought to life by Claude Monet.
Paperback: 184 pages
ISBN: 978-1-9374875-9-1
Dimensions: 8 x 0.48 x 10 inches
Language: English
A Year in the Southwest: A Botanical Journey
Claudia Toutain-Dorbec, an Oregon Coast migrant in New Mexico, finds herself in a land of snakes and sagebrush, and explores the Southwest botanical countryside through her camera lens. She discovers it filled with cowboy charm, ancient Native American pueblos, the Rio Grande and the Santa Fe Railroad, towering mesas, buffalo, hidden arroyos, juniper, piÑon and cottonwood trees. There is a great diversity of landscapes and plant life on Earth, and nowhere is this more dramatic than in the American Southwest. The photographs of Claudia Toutain-Dorbec are about her relationship with the natural world. She approaches her botanical subjects as a portrait, creating images that are forceful, meaningful and beautiful. She walks a tightrope between the real and mystical. Her wilderness is trodden, yet she accepts it as it is: worthy of exploration. Perfect. Imperfect. Inspirational
Paperback: 164 pages
ISBN: 978-1-7360311-1-7
Dimensions: 8 x 0.43 x 10 inches
Language: English
Strolling in Rome with Claudia
Strolling in Rome with Claudia is the Carnet de Voyage Pierre Toutain-Dorbec brings back from his sojourn in the Italian capital, about which he says: “The autumn 2015, spent in Rome, was a somewhat renaissance one for me. How good it was to stroll in Rome again, and at that time, with my wife!”
“There is a strange, countering tension within each of these poems, between feeling inelastic and liberated all in the same instance. I'm reminded of Eugenio Montale and Giuseppe Ungaretti, of their strict formalism and their earthbound stakes that open nevertheless into the imagined above and then again into the spheres of demons and saints.” Christopher Hassett
Paperback: 86 pages
ISBN: 978-1-7360311-5-5
Dimensions: 5.51 x 0.23 x 8.5 inches
Language: English
Varanasi: Or the Perpetual Negation of Self
Pierre Toutain-Dorbec's book of poems and photographs on Varanasi, India, is a stunning tribute to one of the world's oldest cities. Through his evocative verse and vivid imagery, Toutain-Dorbec captures the essence of Varanasi's sacred temples, bustling ghats, and vibrant street life. Each poem and photograph is a window into the city's rich cultural heritage and complex spiritual landscape. With its mesmerizing blend of words and pictures, this book is a must-read for anyone seeking to explore the beauty and mystery of Varanasi.
"Once I smelled Varanasi's dust, a veil of death smothered my ignorance and my knowledge of perpetuity runs wild. Deeply moved, I write and photograph with a new awareness of life." Pierre Toutain-Dorbec, Conversation with Philippe Ganier-Raymond, Paris 1985
Paperback: 74 pages
ISBN: 978-1-7360311-6-2
Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.2 x 8.5 inches
Language: English
BoBo, the Monkey Who Thought He Was a Man
BoBo, the Monkey Who Thought He Was a Man goes outside the bounds of "conventional" professional, academic, or technical genre of literature. In his book, Toutain-Dorbec shares his experiences related to documenting unconscious life. The writing that inspires the dream, and the one that is born from it, and spawns it in return. I'm talking about the dream, the construction of the abstraction in the unconsciousness state, thinking that seeks to escape the constraints of the real.
Toutain-Dorbec utterly liberate writing overcomes all creative blockages and underlines the off-standard or even anti-normative character of this book.
Paperback: 122 pages
ISBN: 978-1937487997
Dimensions: 5.51 x 0.26 x 8.5 inches
Language: English