RÉMI CHAUVIN
When the lights go out in Tasmanian winter, long nights lead to unexpected adventures. To celebrate the creative spirit of this special season, LARK asked five innovative photographers to show us how they “Follow the Amber Glow” through a series of special photographs taken during the island’s long winter.
When it comes to all things, including photography, Rémi Chauvin dives in head-first. After studying journalism and fine arts at UTAS, he went straight to work for Tasmania’s largest newspaper The Mercury, before taking the helm at Mona for the museum’s first six years. During this time, his commissioned and personal work was published across national and international publications, including The Guardian, The Australian, The New York Times, BBC, and Time Magazine, alongside shooting and making art for major galleries and prizes. Although his work has taken him all over the world, observing subjects like climate change throughout the Pacific islands and protests throughout Paris and Hong Kong, Rémi has returned to Tasmania and is embracing what he loves about the island: wild people, places, and experiences. We caught up with him at Fossil Cove, over sips of DARK LARK that had made the steep journey tucked into his padded lens bag.
LARK: Rémi, tell us a bit about yourself
RÉMI: I'm Rémi Chauvin, I'm a commercial and editorial photographer from lutruwita / Tasmania. Mostly working in Tassie, but also around Australia and the world. Tasmania is a lovely place to work. I grew up here, I know everyone, lots of people know me, it's just really a collaborative, beautiful community. The landscapes are amazing, the water is amazing. It's just a really special place in general, so I feel lucky to live and work here.
LARK: What are we doing down here?
RÉMI: Well, we're here at Fossil Cove, which is down near Blackman’s Bay, slightly south of Hobart. It's got really interesting geological forms which are quite dramatic and powerful. It was the geological elements of Fossil Cove that kind of made me think about DARK LARK a little bit. And so linking them up with this kind of weird shoot I was doing, which calls back to the water and the elements that are the base of the whisky just seemed like a fun combination.
LARK: Do you spend a lot of time in wild places?
RÉMI: Well, it definitely breaks up the monotony! Yeah. I mean, as a commercial photographer, you take jobs wherever they are, but sometimes they link up in really weird and wonderful places and they're definitely the ones you remember.
LARK: You’re out here in a wetsuit, half-submerged: is this stressful, or fun?
RÉMI: I like to get in the water as much as I can. I grew up in the water surfing and diving, so it feels quite natural for me. So this shoot is an excuse to kind of get in the water, maybe create some different imagery. But yeah, it has its challenges. You've got swell, you've got splashes, you've got movement, and it all kind of makes it a little bit more challenging, but maybe that makes it more special when it comes together.
Photography is part of my life. It's something I do for work and for pleasure. So for me, sometimes they link up in a really interesting way that's like this. Those kind of jobs keep me going. They keep me interested in what's next and keep me on my toes a little bit.
It's always great to have fun when you work. No matter what you do, getting in the water with your mates and making splashes and splashing my camera and stuff, it's fun, it's silly, and when it comes together, it's great.
Rémi’s red-lit shoot created a dreamy portrait of DARK LARK’s sinful pleasure. If you’re in Hobart, check out Remi’s series of photos The Underland of Earthly Delights at The Still from June 6th, or find his work at https://www.remi-chauvin.com/
