Overview

"Mistral is a portrait of Provence seen through its legendary wind. Photographer Rachel Cobb illustrates the effects of this relentless force of nature that funnels down France's Rhône Valley, sometimes gusting to hurricane strength. The mistral is not just a weather phenomenon: it is an integral part of the fabric of Provençal life impacting its architecture, agriculture, landscape and culture. Houses have few or no windows on the northwest, windward side and the main entrance on the southern, sheltered side. Rows of trees lining fields create windbreaks to shield crops. Artists have long been drawn to the area for the clear skies that follow a mistral. Nobody who lives or spends time in the region can escape the mistral. It is everywhere yet nowhere to be seen. How do you photograph the wind? With images of a leaf caught in flight, grapevines lashed by powerful gusts (""You can taste the wine better when there's a mistral,"" a winemaker says), a bride tangled in her veil, and even spider webs oriented to withstand the wind. Out of thin air Cobb makes us feel the unseen. Including an introduction by Bill Buford and an excerpt from Paul Auster about his life in Provence. Cobb draws from writing by Jean Giono, Frédéric Mistral and others. The book is designed by Yolanda Cuomo Design, NYC."

Full Product Details

9788862086189

Table of Contents

Reviews

A lifelong fascination with the legendary winds of the South of France has yielded a lush and vibrant book--a work that resonates with the intensity of the forces it seeks to capture.--Chloe Schama Vogue Can you capture the wind? No, this is not a riddle. This is what photographer Rachel Cobb set out to do - and not just any wind but le Mistral, the strong, cold wind that blows across Provence in the south of France. Cobb spent years photographing it, starting with Kodachrome film, ending with digital cameras. And she has collected her work in a new book.--Mary Louise Kelly NPR All Things Considered American photojournalist Rachel Cobb has spent several decades capturing the legendary wind that blows through southern France. This relentless force of nature that can gust to hurricane strength is an integral part of the fabric of Proven al life.--Guardian Cobb's new book, Mistral: The Legendary Wind of Provence, is a record of the 20 years she spent hunting the wind.--Marigold Warner British Journal of Photography Mistral: The Legendary Wind of Provence by photojournalist Rachel Cobb is a deeply wonderful, playful, and moving collection of images and text that prove her achievement of something seemingly impossible: photographing the invisible. ... Here, though, there is huge success. Mistral achieves the impossible. ... I found myself lingering over the photographs, imagining the stories behind the shots. Mistral is among those great photobooks that provoke a creative imagining in the viewer's heart and head. .... If I were writing Hollywood hype, I'd use phrases like instant classic. --W. Scott Olsen Lensculture In beautifully evocative stills, a photographer captures the restless swirl of Province's famous wind.--Kim Hubbard People x--LensCulture

A lifelong fascination with the legendary winds of the South of France has yielded a lush and vibrant book--a work that resonates with the intensity of the forces it seeks to capture.--Chloe Schama Vogue x--LensCulture Can you capture the wind? No, this is not a riddle. This is what photographer Rachel Cobb set out to do - and not just any wind but le Mistral, the strong, cold wind that blows across Provence in the south of France. Cobb spent years photographing it, starting with Kodachrome film, ending with digital cameras. And she has collected her work in a new book.--Mary Louise Kelly NPR All Things Considered American photojournalist Rachel Cobb has spent several decades capturing the legendary wind that blows through southern France. This relentless force of nature that can gust to hurricane strength is an integral part of the fabric of Proven al life.--Guardian Cobb's new book, Mistral: The Legendary Wind of Provence, is a record of the 20 years she spent hunting the wind.--Marigold Warner British Journal of Photography Mistral: The Legendary Wind of Provence by photojournalist Rachel Cobb is a deeply wonderful, playful, and moving collection of images and text that prove her achievement of something seemingly impossible: photographing the invisible. ... Here, though, there is huge success. Mistral achieves the impossible. ... I found myself lingering over the photographs, imagining the stories behind the shots. Mistral is among those great photobooks that provoke a creative imagining in the viewer's heart and head. .... If I were writing Hollywood hype, I'd use phrases like instant classic. --W. Scott Olsen Lensculture

A collection of colorful, evocative images documenting the effects of the northerly wind.--PDN's Notable Photo Books of 2018 Mistral: The Legendary Wind of Provence by photojournalist Rachel Cobb is a deeply wonderful, playful, and moving collection of images and text that prove her achievement of something seemingly impossible: photographing the invisible. ... Here, though, there is huge success. Mistral achieves the impossible. ... I found myself lingering over the photographs, imagining the stories behind the shots. Mistral is among those great photobooks that provoke a creative imagining in the viewer's heart and head. .... Mistral is an entertaining, informed and wise photobook. If I were writing Hollywood hype, I'd use phrases like instant classic. --W. Scott Olsen Lensculture The photographs are so moving, so like paintings, so like that wind, so mysterious. They are so brutal and beautiful at once - majestic! There are some wonderful surprising images: people almost seem to be floating in the air, the land and the people being shaped by the wind. I love the writing that goes with it.--Maggie Steber A lifelong fascination with the legendary winds of the South of France has yielded a lush and vibrant book--a work that resonates with the intensity of the forces it seeks to capture.--Chloe Schama Vogue x--LensCulture It's not easy to photograph wind, but that's the challenge Rachel Cobb set herself while she was first visiting and then living in southern France ... Mistral: The Legendary Wind Of Provence is a collection of colorful, evocative images documenting the effects of the northerly wind .... A photojournalist who has shot assignments in Iraq, Bosnia and Guatemala, Cobb captured many moments when the mistral's impact became visible. ... Cobb's images make all these phenomena look both alluring and mysterious.--Photo District News The thoroughness of Cobb's stylization, techniques, and chosen subjects in her photographs all work together to create a thorough and complex portrait of an invisible force.--Adam Ethan Burner Mus e Magazine

Author Information

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available