Béatrice Augier's photography exhibition 'Partage de plage' offers an intimate portrait of Deauville's famous beach, capturing the French coastal town's social landscape through the lens of its longtime resident. The show, part of the Off festival of Planche(s) Contact, presents images that depart from the clichés associated with this historic Normandy destination. Augier, who is married to Deauville's mayor, has lived in the town for nearly two decades, developing a deep relationship with its shoreline that transcends typical tourist documentation. Her work reveals the beach as a democratic space where social barriers dissolve and humanity reveals itself in moments of unguarded joy.
The Planche(s) Contact festival, established in 2010, has transformed Deauville into a significant venue for contemporary photography each autumn, attracting artists who engage with the town's unique character. Augier's participation in the Off festival, which runs parallel to the main program, demonstrates how local perspectives can enrich the artistic dialogue. Her Instagram-inspired practice began as an effort to engage with contemporary visual culture but evolved into a serious photographic investigation. The platform's immediacy and accessibility allowed her to document fleeting moments that might otherwise escape traditional photographic approaches, creating an archive of beach life that spans seasons and years.
Augier's images explore the paradox of anonymity and community that defines public beach culture, particularly in a location as famous as Deauville. She observes how visitors, despite living in an image-obsessed society, abandon self-consciousness when their feet touch the sand, entering what she describes as an 'oceanic feeling of anonymity.' Her photographs capture this liberation: families setting up elaborate camps with umbrellas, strollers, coolers, and inflatable toys; Sri Lankan families in traditional dress standing hand-in-hand in shallow water; and sunbathers sprawled across the vast expanse of sand. The beach becomes a stage where social status, origin, and language temporarily dissolve in shared pleasure.
The photographer's preference for the beach in its empty, melancholic state shifts when summer arrives, bringing a new appreciation for the vibrant energy of seasonal visitors. Augier documents how the shoreline transforms into a microcosm of contemporary French society, with colorful umbrellas and diverse beachgoers reflecting modern multiculturalism rather than the nostalgic imagery of 1920s postcards. Her lens captures the urgency of August Sundays, when the short summer season creates a palpable fear of missing beautiful moments. This temporal pressure has heightened her visual awareness and challenged her natural intolerance, fostering what she describes as a gain in humanity through sustained observation.
The exhibition's most powerful images reveal the beach as a site of unexpected community formation, where strangers cluster around shared resources and collective enjoyment transcends individual differences. Augier's photographs of families organizing their temporary settlements demonstrate how public space becomes personalized through ritual and repetition. Her documentation of visitors from diverse backgrounds—Parisians seeking proximity to the capital, international tourists, and local regulars—creates a visual census of contemporary beach culture. The work suggests that this temporary community, bound by geography and leisure, offers insights into broader social dynamics and the human need for connection.
'Partage de plage' remains on view at Atelier Galerie Béa in Deauville, located at 14800 Deauville, France, with additional information available through the town's official website. The exhibition represents a significant contribution to the Planche(s) Contact festival's mission of exploring Deauville through photographic practice. Augier's sustained engagement with her subject demonstrates how deep familiarity can produce fresh artistic vision, transforming a well-known location into a site of ongoing discovery. Her work invites viewers to reconsider familiar landscapes and recognize the profound beauty in everyday social interactions.
