José Nicolas (1956) - Faya Largeau

Chad, Faya-Largeau, 1987.
In the palm grove, life moves at its own pace, far from the turmoil of the world. A man strides along on his donkey, a woman crosses the path, a bag resting on her head. Simple, everyday gestures, almost immutable. Under the desert light, everyone goes about their business. An ordinary scene that tells of life in the oasis, suspended between sand, earthen walls and time.

José Nicolas is a French photographer and renowned war correspondent, born in Casablanca in 1956.
His career has been particularly marked by war photojournalism and humanitarian reporting:
• He begins field photography, notably in Lebanon, then works with Médecins du Monde alongside Bernard Kouchner
• He then joins Sipa Press and covers for about a dozen years many conflicts: Lebanon, Afghanistan, Chad, Liberia, Romania, Bosnia, Somalia, etc.
• In 1994, he was seriously injured in Rwanda during Operation Turquoise.
• Since then, his work has gradually shifted toward more personal subjects: Provence, landscapes, nature, portraits and the memory of his reporting, often on film and in black and white
• He has also published several books, including French Doctors, The Men of the Reeds, Cambodia and We Are What We Look At. In 2024 he received the SAIF / Benoît Schaeffer Award for photographic editing at Visa pour l’Image.