When we emerged from our rubble, from what remained of our homes, we blinked and squinted, we couldn’t believe our eyes. Freelance photographer Thomas Proust had never been through any hurricane, let alone the monster storm of September 6, 2017, that broke records for its fury. In such a setting of destruction, Proust was lost, confused, unsure, but his professional instincts kicked in and he grabbed his camera. He did what he always does; he framed images and clicked.
Proust had come from France four years prior, and had landed a job with Discover Magazine, the glossy photo-intensive magazine that promotes the natural beauty of the island and the unique people that make their lives here. “I love this island,” he shared with WEEKender over plates of Korean chicken at Rice Upon a Time in Marigot. “I came here five years ago on vacation and I really just fell in love with the place. It’s so beautiful and has such a mixture of so many things, so much diversity.”
Right away, Proust had a collection of photographs that spoke to him. Each day, he ventured out, and he noticed how quickly things were changing. The clean-up was ongoing, zincs were being hauled away and the cars, crushed by trees or walls, were being removed. Once the phone lines were back up, Proust called all the photographers he knew on the island and said, “We have to document this.”
The reactions were varied. Some photographers were on board from the start, but others had no stomach for the assignment. Some would have contributed photos, but their personal situation was too chaotic, too much loss and destruction. They simply couldn’t.
Once the photos began flowing in, Proust considered the collection. “They were from all over the island, which is good, because it wasn’t easy to go everywhere after the storm. Each photographer used their own sensibility and their own style. For instance, Cameron Hyman mostly does fashion photography, so he asked a model to pose amid the destruction. I love the diversity and the mix of places and styles. It’s like how I feel about the island.”
Juxtaposition of Beauty and Destruction
The magazine follows the graphic style of their flagship publication, Discover St. Martin, with glossy, large format photographs and poetic captions in both French and English. Each photo presents juxtaposition: ragged metal or crumbled concrete set against the island’s natural beauty. “I wanted to remain true to the Caribbean colour palette, with vibrant colours and blue skies and the turquoise sea,” said Proust. He admitted that he would have liked to have more photos of people, “But it is hard to photograph people when they have been through a tragedy; they don’t understand why you are taking their photo and they want to experience their emotions in private.”
The magazine is being appreciated for its capturing of those moments after Irma when residents were still somewhat dazed. A picture is worth a thousand words, it’s said, and these pictures are indeed eloquent. It fills a need for a physical memory receptacle and as such serves as a collector’s item, a place to turn when the memories need to be communicated to one who was not there. “Rather than present statistics, facts, wind speeds; rather than being journalistic, I wanted this to tell the story of Irma in a more artistic, reflective and emotional way.”
Contributing photographers are Steph Déziles, Agnès Etchegoyen, Richard Hazel, Cameron Hyman, Grégory Rohard, Donovane Trémor and Jean Vallette, as well as the project director Thomas Proust. Text was provided by Charlotte Reville and Day Bourlier. The magazine is published by Rosdal.
There are no advertisements in the Discover Irma, and so, unlike Discover St. Martin, which is free, this magazine is priced at €15. It is available at Good Cards, Van Dorp, Carrefour Market, the Grand Case Airport and the Marigot Library, with more places becoming available all the time. Those off island can purchase the magazine from the websites irma.discover-magazines.com and sxmstrong.com
