In the studio of… Pascal Normand | A photographer at night

Nocturnal animal, Quebec artist Pascal Normand photographs urban sites when we sleep! In the workshop, he develops a photographic work on a computer which will result in a digital impression enhanced with paint. A technique that is very successful while paying tribute to the built heritage.

Eric Clement
Press

Martin Tremblay
Press

The artist

42-year-old Pascal Normand first worked in the television and film industry. He wrote and directed short films, filming with Hélène Bourgeois Leclerc in his early days. While indulging in night photography. He has retained from his cinematographic experience the taste for location, the importance of the narrative framework and a certain way of making urban places speak.

“At first I didn’t have any pretensions in the visual arts, to be exhibited or anything,” he says. It was more of an exploration for fun, until I moved into full-time photography in my early thirties. ”

Pascal Normand still photographs at night. “When I bought my first camera, around the year 2000, I instinctively tried night photography. I was immediately fascinated by the way in which we can bring light to life at night. Even when it is difficult to perceive it with the eye. There is a magic at night. The places belong to us! ”

The artist likes to take his tripod to old industrial sites. He likes the visual richness of the architectures, especially dilapidated, the history behind the buildings, the atypical side of the buildings. As evidenced by his shots of the iconic Farine Five Roses and Silo n^o 5. “People, when they see my works, try to guess where the place is,” he said. He recently climbed the Tour de la Bourse from where he took several photographs, including the one that led to the work Amalgam Montreal. With a view of the blue-lit Champlain Bridge.

The workshop

His workshop was previously in Hochelaga, but it was too small. The artist moved with his family to Beloeil. There, the workshop is ideal for creating large works and welcoming the public. Pascal Normand’s works are produced there using a particular technique that creates a kind of magic and plays with reality. For his work Quebec Bridge, he made the Pierre-Laporte Bridge disappear! He often removes light pollution to better highlight his buildings.

To give his digital prints a unique finish, he projects paint over his photographic creations to suggest additional texture. Then, he varnishes the work with a roller to protect it and give it a “look”. His works are “limited originals”. For each digital print, he creates 25 works of all sizes. The paint makes the difference from one room to another. Even if its proportion is minimal compared to the photographic part.

Curfew and deconfinement

“During the curfew last spring, I didn’t realize I could go out at night! ”

As it is his job to photograph at night, Pascal Normand had no problem continuing to take nocturnal views of the city. He was intercepted twice by the police, but proved his good faith and was able to continue his activities. He usually works at the start of the week. When it’s calmer. “With the curfew it was sick, a real no man’s land,” he says. It was very creative for me. ”

Since his outings during the curfew, he has started to create circular works. Unique prints on canvas mounted on wood panel. In a more abstract style, with a combination of blur and sharpness on the corner of a building covered in graffiti. “I made a series of 20. I worked with an author to write texts for each work. I’m aiming for a post one day. ”

New arrivals

For the first time, Pascal Normand is now interested in the campaign. He took pictures of farm buildings and landscapes on the outskirts of Mont Saint-Hilaire. “I already have six works in this series Look out over Saint-Hilaire, and a solo scheduled for 2022 at the Maison de la culture Eulalie-Durocher, in Saint-Antoine-sur-Richelieu. ”

For 10 years, the photographer has made a living from this art born from the night. It has enjoyed high visibility, particularly on the Internet, since 2015. “Everyone now has a camera in their pocket,” he says. We have become a world of shared images, conveyed. My technique thus allowed me to stand out. I didn’t work much with art galleries, but I managed to develop a network. I build it quietly, with my site, the newsletter, social networks, contests, participation in symposia, visits by amateurs to the workshop, in a safe way. We need a multiple strategy. ”

When his children have more autonomy, Pascal Normand will expand his exploration territory. For example, he aspires to go to the Detroit and Great Lakes region, where obsolete industrial sites are numerous. But he will make his night trips with a guide …

The gallery