The Norman festival Les Boréales celebrates Iceland and its landscapes in Caen and Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer

The Les Boréales festival, dedicated to Nordic cultures, takes place until Sunday November 26 in Caen and throughout Normandy. This 31st edition is dedicated to Iceland, with two photography exhibitions that capture a bit of the soul of this fascinating island.

Since 1992, the Les Boréales festival has consolidated the links forged for centuries between the Nordic countries and Normandy. Originally, the festival was exclusively literary, but the event very quickly expanded to include other arts and now offers theater, dance, music, cinema, circus and exhibitions. This year, the festival takes place from November 15 to 26, 2023.

Among the exhibitions offered, Sveit, the soul of Iceland by photographer Bruno Compagnon in Caen, explores the rural landscapes of the island. “Sveit” is an Icelandic administrative term for the countryside. Passionate about the rural world, Bruno Compagnon has observed during his travels the evolution of the Icelandic agricultural world, its upheavals and its rituals.

“Farms are less and less numerous, like here in France, they are becoming more and more concentrated. And what interested me was the solidarity of the breeders. Given nature which is so austere, they don’t really have a choice but to help each other.“, he explains.

Two different and complementary visions of Iceland

With his black and white photographs, Bruno Compagnon also wanted to tell the rural traditions of Iceland. “Around September, they will collect all the animals they released into the wild in the spring. They go to the highlands to look for sheep. This is where we see mutual aid. It’s a kind of initiation rite. You are not allowed to participate before the age of 14. Once you participate, you can move on to adulthood“, relates the photographer.

A few kilometers from Caen, on the coast, a second exhibition (“Islande architexture”) at the hall of Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer complements the first. Colored landscapes, some immortalized using drones, by the artist Yann Couëdel. The latter also created astonishing 3D views by cutting and pasting.

This Saturday, November 25, a preview screening of the film will also take place as part of the festival. King’s Land with Mads Mikkelsen, who retraces an episode of little-known Danish history.

“Sveit, the soul of Iceland” by Bruno Compagnon. A. de Tocqueville Library, in Caen until January 7, 2024.

“Iceland architexture” by Yann Couëdel. Halle de Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer until December 31, 2023.