The Man of the Crowd

Vincent Couderc started his artistic practice by drawing. He went to a high-school specialised in art. He turned to photography before integrating the ETPA (photography school) in Toulouse. As a curious observer, he shares bits and pieces of his experiences and interrogations through his photographs

"The wild effects of the light enchained me to an examination of individual faces ; and although the rapidity with which the world of light flitted before the window prevented me from casting more than a glance upon each visage, still it seemed that, in my then peculiar mental state, I could frequently read, even in that brief interval of a glance, the history of long years." Edgar Allan Poe

The rise of cities has led to a transformation of lifestyles and contributed to the creation of a new society.

From this observation, stems the idea of my project that I entitled The Man of the Crowd, in reference to Edgar Allan Poe’s tale.

The beginning of this work goes back to my first trip to New York, in 2011. This first encounter with a “Global City” made me fascinated, with an urge to go back. Each stay allowed me to go further in my approach to the city and its people.

Through these travels and my experience, I became interested in the place of man in these big cities. The origin of this work comes from this exploration of life and urban forms.

In my own way, I wanted to question the modern city, wander its ramifications in successive steps, from city to city, in order to try to understand and to capture it.

It is a paradoxical megapolis that mixes the turmoil and the isolation, trendy neighborhoods and popular streets. This urban maze with a dissonant pace, bystanders briefly cross each other, mixing suffocation and unfathomable loneliness.

I roam through a labyrinth, stopping at the whim of my mood, I follow my shadow.