He responded very quickly. And favorably. Jean-Paul Rickelin agreed to present an exhibition of his animal photos on the large white wall of the former Géant shopping arcade.
“We try to do two or three things, but it’s not easy.” Maxime Vérouil is co-manager of the bar Le Quinzième, in the heart of the Géant Casino shopping mall. Yes, if the supermarket has closed its doors, the gallery is still open and fifteen traders are still present.
But since the departure of the supermarket, a large white wall several meters high has been installed. To brighten things up a bit, and allow more visitors to come to the gallery, Jean-Paul Rickelin agreed to present an exhibition of his animal photographs, thus responding to the invitation of the bar managers.
But if, at times, you have to be particularly patient, it’s also sport. I can spend days observing and not taking photos. And managed to take a photo of an ermine hunting in the Nouvialle nase. It’s quite exceptional.
At 74, the man remains a tireless image hunter. “I was born in Allanche. And I’ve been taking photos forever. But, I have only been taking photos of animals for around forty years,” he explains. All the photos presented in the gallery for this unique exhibition “were taken in Cantal in recent years”.
And man has been able to capture astonishing images of animals, some of which are renowned for their discretion. Like these foxes, or this otter in the Cère valley. Or these birds, including a vulture on the heights of the department.
“I go out a lot with my friend Gilles Caro.”
Image hunters on the lookout for deer bellows in Cantal
Jean-Paul Rickelin light hunting: “I use an Olympus camera and a 150/400 zoom. As you can walk a lot, you shouldn’t load yourself too much.” He continues: “You see, during the last smoldering period, which started early this year, I saw a lot of bucks and quite a few does.” The exhibition is visible during gallery opening hours. It’s free.
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Bruno-Serge Leroy
