Jean Luc Mylayne (Twin Palms 2006)

Jean Luc Mylayne. (Twin Palms 2006)
-Hardcover with illustrated dustjacket
-136 pages
-100 four colour plates, 33x 30.5cm.

This is Texas based photographer, Jean Luc Mylayne's, first book. For over thirty years, he photographed the birds of his native France. The creation of each image is a laborious process which can take months as Mylayne returns to the same location, day after day. Mylayne particularly focuses on bluebirds indigenous to Western Europe and the Western United States. "When I see a bird, I see at the same time that bird on a tree near the house. I see everything as an ensemble, and I realize that's how I see everything in life. . . . I try to capture all those places at the same moment". Mylayne's subtle play on perspective and use of angles, creates not only intimate photographs of the subject but also frames their serene landscapes. The result is a unique and haunting collection of photographs. An unexpected choice perhaps, but one of my favourite books of recent years.