The 13th edition of Portrait(s) in Vichy

Edito
Isabel Muñoz is a major figure in Spanish photography. Her life’s work, which is equal parts powerful and necessary, has taken over the walls of Vichy’s biggest spa, the Grand Établissement Thermal.

For more than 30 years, the artist’s work has tackled contemporary issues such as identity, gender, community and, above all, the permanence and impermanence of the body. She turns the body into a territory that is simultaneously intimate and universal, given over, in all its raw sensuality, to the possibility of profound transformation.

In today’s world, it more crucial than ever to embrace and express who we are. In her own way, Isabel Muñoz offers a visual manifesto, a declaration of love for difference, for otherness, for the plural beauty of the human and of the living world. Some of the works - masterpieces in their own right - are printed by the artist herself, using the now- rare artisanal technique of platinum printing. These are works presented in unique formats, much like imprints of the soul itself .

From her first photographic explorations in 1980 to the most recent images of the hybrid, futuristic bodies of cyborgs, each image questions, honours and celebrates humanity in all its diversity and affirmation. The exhibition was produced with guest co- curator François Cheval.

The retrospective presented in Vichy covers the whole of her life’s work, with photographs, films and installations reconstructing a sensitive and vibrant journey through time and perspective.

On the esplanade of the Lac d’Allier, a themed exhibition on the pop and glamour of gingham, also known as the Vichy Check, invites visitors to stroll under the open sky and discover the famous pattern first popularised by Empress Eugénie. The exhibition features archive images the press, fashion and film.

The transmission of culture and ideas has been a priority for Portrait(s) since it was founded.

La voix du regard, in which Brigitte Patient is given carte blanche, takes us on a visual and aural journey through the analysis of a photograph. This year, Omar Victor Diop and Lee Shulman are in the spotlight with the project Being There.

Des mots pour voir, with the support of Neuflize OBC, a long-standing partner from whose collection we select works by a different artist each year. For the 2025 exhibition, two works by Valérie Jouve are accompanied by a sound recording in which the people of Vichy provide their takes on the artist’s photographs.

Portrait(s) s’invite à l’école, photography in a school setting. Students in their final year at the Lycée Albert Londres have worked on the theme of human relations within their school.

Portrait(s) is also supporting creative expression via three residency commissions.

Meyer transforms the skies above Vichy into spaces for levitation. Some 30 women from Vichy were invited to express their dreams; the result is a moment of suspended, pure poetic flight.

Photographer Namsa Leuba has been invited to CAVILAM-Alliance Française, a school renowned for the quality of its French language teaching, to apply her singular, colourful approach to celebrating the cultural diversity of the school’s students, who come from all over the world.

Patrick Tournebœuf is delivering a new selection of photographs as part of a commission launched by the city of Vichy and Vichy Culture on the architectural splendours of Europe’s great spa towns and UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This year, he has photographed exceptional heritage sites and architecture in Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic.

Welcome to Vichy for the 13th edition of Portrait(s), celebrating culture and supporting creativity and freedom of expression.

FANY DUPÊCHEZ, Artistic Director


ISABEL MUÑOZ: THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS
The Left Hand of Darkness exhibition is the largest retrospective ever devoted to the work of Isabel Muñoz in France. More than 80 works are on show and spanning her entire career, from the first photographs she took in Spain in the 1980s to her recent experiments with cyborgs. Through different series, the exhibition explores the singular relationship the artist nurtures with her subjects, shifting between empathy, power and sensitivity. Borrowing the title of the science-fiction novel The Left Hand of Darkness, written by Ursula K. Le Guin in 1969, the exhibition connects with the author’s prophetic and visionary creative world. Through her photographs, Isabel Muñoz questions gender identity, desire and pain, and the solitude of the body.

François Cheval, guest co-curator.
Exhibition supported by Cinq Étoiles Productions


VICHY: CHEERFUL? CHECK!
The Vichy Check, a Thematic Exhibition.
Whether Brigitte Bardot’s puffy skirt, Lauren Bacall’s jacket with rolled-up sleeves, Frank Sinatra’s casual shirt, Sheila’s bikini, Lady Di’s pink trousers, or even our grandmothers’ kitchen aprons, we can all remember a little piece of Vichy (or gingham) checked fabric, which seems to epitomise the carefree years of our youth. This fashion was first launched in France by Empress Eugenie. The dignitary would vacation in Vichy, where a local spinning mill produced these woven, checked cottons destined for greatness. Through a rich selection of images, dating from the mid-19th century to the present day and sourced from the press, fashion and film, the Vichy Check is enjoying a revival this summer on the esplanade of Lac d’Allier.

LA VOIX DU REGARD: UNE CARTE BLANCHE À BRIGITTE PATIENT
Each year, Brigitte Patient goes through the decade of Portrait(s) exhibitions. She chooses an artist and an image and takes us on a journey through sight and sound, describing what she perceives, what she imagines, and what she knows about the photographer and their place in the history of photography. Guided by her voice, the viewer follows her gaze through a moving image that gradually reveals itself… This year, visitors will discover a photograph by Lee Shulman and Omar Victor Diop, from the series Being There by The Anonymous Project. Brigitte Patient’s unique words are displayed in dialogue with the photograph, inspiring curiosity and a desire to see more. Lee Shulman is the founder of The Anonymous Project.

Omar Victor Diop is represented by Galerie Magnin-A, Paris.
Sound editing: Félix Fouchet


DES MOTS POUR VOIR: VALÉRIE JOUVE
PRESENTED WITH THE SUPPORT OF NEUFLIZE OBC
Neuflize OBC Foundation presents Des mots pour voir, an exhibition aiming to highlight the works of the Neuflize OBC photographic and video Collection. Portrait(s) and the Neuflize OBC Foundation are pursuing the innovative project launched in 2018. The objective is to introduce the public to the exciting works in the Neuflize OBC Collection, while providing a platform for analysis and exchange about the works to encourage an open, ongoing dialogue between the public, academics, experts, and artists. This year, two works by Valérie Jouve from the Neuflize OBC Collection are being exhibited for the duration of the festival. Comments by members of the public collected by the mediator before the exhibition will be presented in the exhibition room.

Médiation : Camille Carrias
Montage sonore : Alexis Hamoui

MEYER: DREAMS OF FLYING WOMEN
Get ready to take to the skies and admire the landscapes of Vichy with a new, lighthearted, poetic series of images created as part of an artistic residency. Some 30 Vichy women from a wide range of backgrounds shared a dream and took part in a creative thought experiment, imagining themselves flying over the streets, squares and rooftops of their city. Suspended between heaven and earth, they offer an offbeat, tender and dream-like vision of their daily lives. Through this symbolic gesture, they each express a deep-seated desire, a long-buried memory or simply the need for a different perspective on their lives, their home and themselves. An invitation to dream together, to rise above.

NAMSA LEUBA: A SHARED WORLD
In 2025, CAVILAM-Alliance Française is inaugurating a new artistic event with the creation of its first Francophone photographic residency. The institution has invited the Swiss-Guinean photographer Namsa Leuba, renowned for her work combining contemporary aesthetics and the exploration of cultural identities. Delving into the daily lives of the institution’s international community, Namsa Leuba presents a series of brightly coloured, pop-inspired portraits celebrating tradition and cultural complexity. Through this exhibition, visitors will discover a kaleidoscope of identities, stories and perspectives, united by a common thread: the French language as a space for dialogue and creation. Exhibition displayed on the façade of CAVILAM alongside an exhibition outside the Pôle Universitaire presenting a selection of the artist’s personal work. Namsa Leuba is represented for her personal work by galerie in camera, Paris.

PATRICK TOURNEBOEUF: EUROPE’S GREAT WATER CITIES UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITES
Patrick Tourneboeuf is interested in changes to Europe’s monumental heritage, and his work on architecture combines documentary and visual approaches. After juxtaposing Vichy and Baden-Baden last year, he is continuing his exploration of major European spa towns listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This year, he is presenting images produced in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. Much like Vichy, this thermal destination developed from the mid-18th century onwards, when the fashion for spa treatments led to a rise in luxurious buildings along with leisure architecture such as theatres and casinos.