Romain Jacquet-Lagreze
About the Artist:
Romain Jacquet-Lagrѐze is a French graphic artist with a Masters in multimedia and art from East Paris University. His interest in photography began during his period of working in Los Angeles and Tokyo, and subsequently blossomed into a passion after his arrival in Hong Kong.
Stunned by its architectural "race to the sky", he felt the need to use his camera to share his feelings about the city. The geometry of the urban environment and the vivid lives it shelters are the aspects of Hong Kong that inspire him most.
The name Vertical Horizon is an obvious reminder of our competitive Hong Kong skyline where each building is trying to be the tallest, the boldest, the most beautiful, the youngest, the oldest or the most famous.
The city refers to how we grow as a person. Our lives are like buildings; we start at the bottom, we reach for the sky and our foundation is crucial to our success which is why I work from low-angle shots.
This series creates awareness of one’s environment. While wading through the city, lost in our own thoughts, we tend to not pay too much intention to what’s going on above us. Hong Kong is not a 2-D place that follows the flatness of a map but instead a volumetric place, where elevators leading us to restaurants, shops, home or our working place deserve their own street names…
Vertical Horizon is a reminder on how we are nothing more than a bee in the big beehive, chipping in our bit into the greater realm of society. "The angles in which I make the shots emphasize the large scale of the structures around us in contrast to our own little being. Being conscious of our humble condition, to me, is the first step to move to our full potential and reach for our vertical horizon."
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Romain Jacquet-Lagreze 2nd edition (2014) Hard cover, 160 pages ISBN: 9789881317902 Hardcover, 160 page 290 x 220mm Published by Asia One Books, Hong Kong Purchase here. |
About Wild Concrete:
Wild Concrete is a series about the resilience of nature in an urban environment.
No matter how clever we are at dominating our environment with concrete structures, nature somehow finds its way to fight back. This reminds us that our concrete jungle eventually would have to give in to the force of nature if we’d let go, as captured by Romain’s images of sprouting flowers and maturing trees on unlikely places.
Focusing solely on the phenomena of trees taking root on the residential buildings of the busiest districts of Hong Kong, Wild Concrete compares the living conditions between plants and humans both growing in harsh surroundings. In this series the trees share the same exceptional qualities as their human counterparts: perseverance, diligence, and independence.
In pursuit of a small patch of blue sky in the vertical city of Hong Kong, Romain looked up to the skyscrapers and therefore developed the Vertical Horizon series. Returning with Wild Concrete, Romain has continued with his flânerie through the same concrete jungle. Exploring his fascination with the humble yet indomitable presence of nature in the harsh urban environment.
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Romain Jacquet-Lagreze Hard cover, 160 pages Published by Asia One Books, Hong Kong |
For purchase and publication details of the book Vertical Horizon, please visit AO: The Photo Book Center.
Both prints and books are available by the artist.
For sales inquiries regarding prints please contact Sarah Greene | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
For sales inquiries regarding books please contact Clare Chan | This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or purchase directly from the website here.
Press:
The Optimist, January 07, 2015
DIVO Magazine, December 13, 2014
World Press Photography, October 9, 2014
Parismatch (France), June 12, 2014
Young Post, SCMP (HK), March 27, 2014
ABC News (U.S.), February 22, 2014
El Pais (Spain), February 15, 2014
All That is Interesting, June 6, 2013
International Business Times, May 28, 2013
The Wall Street Journal, May 28, 2013
South China Morning Post, May 16, 2013
The Telegraph UK Travel, May 11, 2013
National Geographic Travel 365, April 30, 2013
The Huffington Post, April 24, 2013
Blogs:
Fast Company & Design, July 2014
Photoblog.hk, February 20, 2014
Design you Trust, February 22, 2014
Greener Ideal, February 20, 2014
Hauser (German), December Issue, 2013
Lonely Planet Traveller, December Issue, 2013
Epopee Urbaine, October Issue, 2013




















