L'ANGLE Gallery in Hendaye, France, is presenting "After Summer," a compelling photography exhibition by Brazilian-born artist Roberto Badin that captures the serene transformation of the Basque Coast during its off-season months. The collection reflects Badin's intimate exploration of everyday life and the extraordinary beauty found in ordinary moments, inspired by the dramatic changes in light and atmosphere that occur when tourist crowds disappear.

Badin's artistic philosophy draws heavily from French writer Georges Perec's concept of the "infra-ordinary" – the mundane, everyday occurrences that often go unnoticed. "What happens every day and recurs every day, the banal, the everyday, the obvious, the common, the ordinary, the infra-ordinary, the background noise, the usual, how do we account for it, how do we question it, how do we describe it?" Perec once asked, a question that resonates throughout Badin's work.

The photographer's connection to coastal life runs deep, stemming from his childhood spent facing the ocean. When he settled on the Basque Coast, Badin was immediately struck by the region's unique light and atmospheric changes, particularly during the off-season. "That moment when the region empties itself of its seasonal workers and, as with any seaside region, the atmosphere becomes more serene and convivial," he explains. "The emotion that emerges is so powerful that I felt the need to capture it in images."

Badin deliberately chose to focus on the banality of everyday life rather than pursuing journalistic documentation of extraordinary events. The surreal emptiness of cities during the 2020 pandemic lockdowns actually prevented him from continuing his photographic work, as he felt it created a false impression that didn't align with his artistic vision. Instead, he waited for normal life to resume before allowing his project to resurface naturally.

The creative process behind "After Summer" presented unique challenges that appealed to the artist. Unlike traveling to unfamiliar destinations with fresh eyes, photographing the streets around one's home requires a different approach. "Confronted daily with the same details and ambiences, everything could seem almost too banal to catch the eye," Badin notes. "It's precisely this challenge that appealed to me: the simplicity of things, the fascinating aesthetics of the ordinary everyday."

Badin's methodology was deliberately constrained and intimate. His exploration took place entirely on foot over a specific time period, and he discovered that he never ventured beyond a 4-kilometer radius from his home. This self-imposed limitation transformed his daily walks into a journey with imaginary boundaries, allowing intuition and chance to guide his wandering. Rather than simply documenting what he saw, his intention was to understand and tame the space around him in order to extract its true identity.

The photographer describes his approach as "a kind of cartography in which light and emotion were my only guides." Without consciously realizing it, he found himself drawing from his eternal sources of inspiration: architecture, cinema, and literature. The daily ritual of reviewing his photographs became a source of pleasure, as he discovered new attitudes and expressions in the characters captured within his images.

"After Summer" deliberately avoids showcasing emptiness for its own sake. Instead, Badin focuses on revealing what exists around and within the spaces he photographs. The project aims to observe a fragment of reality as the artist sees and feels it, without the ambition of imposing a specific narrative. Instead, viewers are invited to create their own stories by looking at the photographs and discovering what becomes visible through closer observation over time.

Roberto Badin brings impressive credentials to this personal project. Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, he moved to France in the late 1980s and established himself as a renowned still-life photographer. His commercial work includes collaborations with numerous international magazines and prestigious campaigns in the luxury and fashion industries. He was selected to participate in the "Lady Dior As Seen By" project, which toured major capitals worldwide.

Badin's artistic recognition has grown significantly in recent years. In 2017, his personal work was exhibited at the prestigious Selfridges department store in London. His first book, "Inside Japan," published in 2018 by Éditions Benjamin Blanck, has been featured in several notable photographic exhibitions, including the prestigious Rencontres de la Photographie in Arles, the Musée des Arts Asiatiques in Nice, and previously at L'ANGLE gallery in Hendaye in 2020.

The "After Summer" series represents the continuation of Badin's artistic evolution and will be published in 2023 by Éditions 37.2. L'ANGLE gallery, located at 6, rue des Citronniers in Hendaye, provides an intimate setting for viewers to experience these contemplative photographs. The gallery is open Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., and on Sundays from 11 a.m. Visitors can contact the gallery at 06 80 06 28 57 or via email at contact@langlephotos.fr for additional information.