Une galerie de vins, sur pointe 1930 - 1960

Helio-Cachan made this black and white photograph, measuring 150 by 101 mm, of a wine cellar, sometime in the past. Imagine the repetitive task of stacking these bottles, row upon row, each at a slight angle, like soldiers in a very patient army. There’s something about the light, the perspective, that almost makes it feel like you’re falling into it, tumbling down this tunnel of wine, and it’s a little bit scary, isn't it? Helio-Cachan, he, she, they have chosen to immortalize this space and the light is fascinating, it falls from above and is a little bit eerie, the bottles lined up in their racks, receding into the depth of the image. It is quite architectural, the lines of the ceiling mimicking the lines of the wine racks. Doesn’t it make you think about all the people who have been storing wine for centuries, people who have come before us?