Paris, Thursday November 13, 2008 /PRNewswire/ — Baume & Mercier CEO Michel Nieto, Caroline Gaudriault and Gérard Rancinan had the very great pleasure of unveiling "The Photographer" on the Palais de Tokyo Mezzanine in Paris at a world premier preview.

"The Photographer" exhibition at the Palais de Tokyo Mezzanine in Paris

This unique evening stood out for the exceptional presence of many grand masters of contemporary photography, such as Reza, James Nachtwey, David Burnett, Elliott Erwitt, Antonin Kratochvil, Roman Opalka, Ragnar Axelsson and many others.

David Burnett (Photograph)

Since the exhibit was scheduled at the same time as Paris Photo, the international elite of the photography world was on hand, along with aficionados such as Pascal Gentil, Sandrine Quetier, Adriana and Christian Karembeu to get the first look at this moving exhibit.

The Project and Baume & Mercier's Involvement in Photography

A few years ago, as Baume & Mercier was looking for a true area of expression, photography naturally suggested itself by virtue of its identical heritage based on strong values of proximity, timelessness, memory, technology, quality, expertise, universality and accessibility. After all, does not photography also measure passing time, by stopping it?

Christian Karembeu, Caroline Gaudriault (reporter and "The Photographer" co-autor),

Michel Nieto (Baume & Mercier CEO) and Adriana Karembeu

Always in tune with its times, Baume & Mercier intuitively turned to what is now considered a major art of the 21st century. So for several years now, Baume & Mercier has endeavored to work alongside the most important institutions and festivals, and the most talented photographers, all over the world. From PhotoEspaña in Madrid to the Magnum agency in New York and Fotofest in Houston; from the Asian Civilization Museum in Singapore to the Henri Cartier-Bresson Foundation in Paris; and from FotoGrafia in Rome to the Westlich Gallery in Vienna and the Young Gallery in Brussels, Baume & Mercier displays its total and global involvement in the world of photography.

With "The Photographer," Baume & Mercier reaffirms its commitment to photography and does a bit more championing of its position as a contemporary watchmaker curious to capture the memory of today and tomorrow.

The Swiss watchmaking company has no desire to remain an observer; rather, it wants to participate in a world that resembles its own, by becoming the "originator, producer and co-director" of a photography project. That is why it has joined forces with Caroline Gaudriault and Gérard Rancinan to dream up a voyage interspersed with encounters with the living masters of contemporary photography* at various stops around the world. It is a tribute to the greatest witnesses of our times. Yet Baume & Mercier did not micromanage Gérard Rancinan's and Caroline Gaudriault's creative choices at all. CEO Michel Nieto explains "the only requirements we set for them were to immortalize some contemporary photographers and to successfully retranscribe their initial vision of the world."

Gérard Rancinan (Photograph and "The Photographer" co-autor)

These famous photographers are masters of the art of waiting for the critical moment, of creating a distinctive photographic ambience or world of their own. This time, they find themselves alone in front of the lens, with no artifice, at the very heart of their private life. They have all played the game and made an effort so that we can get a glimpse of their world through a portrait.

*Araki - Elliot Erwitt - Martin Parr - Sebastiao Salgado - James Nachtwey - Ragnar Axelsson - Mimmo Jodice - Oliviero Toscani - Mary Ellen Mark - Eikoh Hosoe - Patrick Demarchelier - David Burnett - Albert Watson - Reza - Pierre et Gilles - Peter Lindbergh - Marc Riboud - Malick Sidibé - Antonin Kratochvil - Roman Opalka - Ron Galella - Rankin and David Lachapelle.

The Style of Gérard Rancinan and Caroline Gaudriault

Gérard Rancinan is a famous photographer who exhibits in the world's greatest galleries and museums, contributes to major magazines (Paris Match, Photo, Life Magazine, and others) and is well accustomed to photographing major figures (religious figures, powerful leaders and contemporary artists). He has made the portraits of his counterparts on silver film using a Hasselblad. In this artistic work, he has explored and brought together photographers of all backgrounds, styles and leanings who, without him, would never have had any reason to meet. Through this exhibit, Gérard Rancinan pays tribute to his brothers in the art and tries to answer a question that has haunted him for a number of years: Who is the Photographer? Perhaps he is the one who allows the other to keep his eyes open.

During these "photographic interviews," Caroline Gaudriault collected the stories of these lives spent watching the world. She successfully reconstructed the power of their commitment to photography through texts that are moving, delicate and always very sincere. Weaving a thread among these different worlds and personalities, who were selected for their masterful work but also for their commitment, she recounts this voyage into the universality of photography along with the various questions asked about the photographic process and the photographer's responsibility in the photographic act.

The Collaboration between Baume & Mercier, Gérard Rancinan and Caroline Gaudriault

Longtime friends Baume & Mercier, Gérard Rancinan and Caroline Gaudriault have already worked together on joint projects such as "Entre-Temps," for which about twenty well-known figures (athletes, artists, NGO founders, famous doctors, etc.) reflected on the abstract notion of time. A high-level sprinter and a heart surgeon each have their own different ideas of it.

Michel Nieto (Baume & Mercier CEO) and Reza (Photograph)

These friends also have a deep mutual respect for each others' work, commitment, and involvement in the world of photography.

When Baume & Mercier brought up this initiative, it immediately appealed to Gérard Rancinan and Caroline Gaudriault, because through this voyage the watchmaker was suggesting, they would be able to make maximum use of their combined talents as a photographer and leading reporter… a perfect alchemy that takes us to the heart of the photographic world's reflections and questioning.

The Exhibit

Making reference to the book, the Palais de Tokyo's Mezzanine has been transformed into a maze, a walk right through the inside of a print shop in the process of making the book. Each photograph's world is recreated on large, sometimes unfinished pages that float in the air as they dry. Some of the photographs from the book, printed in large format (1.70 x 1.50 m), are marked up, underlined, stained and printed to give visitors the impression of seeing the pages of an imaginary book in preparation.

Michel Nieto (Baume & Mercier CEO) and David Burnett (Photograph)

This very original scenography, thought up by Gérard Rancinan and Marc Thiebault, is also meant to be a multimedia environment. The sounds by Ferdinand Bouchara and the video created by David Lanzmann accentuate the exhibit's modernity by bringing the portraits to life.

After closing in Paris, this traveling exhibit will tour the world in 2009 and 2010.

Source: Baume & Mercier