les mornes, le feu (2022 - ongoing)

Les Mornes, le feu is a long term project that focuses on urban culture and youth in the French oversea islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique. Inspired by Olivier Marboeuf’s insights into “escaping the plantation,” Les Mornes, le Feu repositions Caribbean urban culture as a contemporary form of marooning—an act of cultural insurgency within spaces historically confined by exoticized narratives. This long-term project is an intimate yet critical exploration of young Caribbeans who, through dynamic practices of cultural adaptation and reinvention, resist and reconstruct identities through the landscapes of colonial memory.

Following a group of mostly young men through their practice of «cabrage», or «rodeo» on a parking lot of Fort-de-France, the photographer offers a contemporary perspective on both land and bodies. The parking lot of Aliker Stadium becomes a refuge where young people find a way to assert themselves, create and connect through a practice that is not only physical but also spiritual. Anchored in the postcolonial city, the landscapes that unfold evoke an environment that is both mythical and mystical. Nature, in cohabitation with the urban, is shaped by it and adorned with objects charged with symbolism and ritual force. At its heart, Les Mornes, le Feu is an exploration of crossing—of how youths navigate liminal spaces that evoke both the history of the Middle Passage and the continuous drive for freedom and reimagined futures. As a tribute to lives lived within and beyond these symbolic crossings, the project is a testament to the power of imagination, redefining identity as a living, transformative journey deeply embedded in the collective struggle for cultural renewal and self-determined existence.