Why did you choose this profession?
Because it was the only one that allowed me to live happily! It allowed me to work on engraving and photography at the same time, to work alongside international artists, to discover new cultures and to learn a bit more about them every day by listening to their stories.
Which project has most influenced you?
In 2016 I worked with Spanish photographer Santiago Albert, who photographs Mayan communities in Guatemala. I went to Guatemala and spoke with the photographed Chichicastenango community to find out the best ways of representing them. The experience had a profound impact on me.
© Eric Chenal
How would you define an object that is well made?
To me the words ‘well made’ convey a notion of quality, control, or even excellence. It implies work where hand and spirit combine in perfect harmony. This is achieved when the choice of technique, the form, the original photo and the words of the artist become inseparable.
How do tradition and innovation influence your work?
My expertise consists of the tireless repetition of a gesture from the 19th century. Over time, I have learned not to copy it but to enrich it. My work on copper plates, for example, is innovative, since most of my predecessors only considered them to be tools for the reproduction of an image, rather than pieces of art in themselves.