Phares de l'Atlantique Nord

Jean Guichard

200 pages

Résumé

Lighthouses have served humanity for thousands of years. Today's lighthouses, both old and new, man-powered or electronically operated, are monuments to man's will to challenge the elements. Replete with history and heroism, lighthouses have an extraordinary capacity to capture the public imagination. For North Atlantic Lighthouses, acclaimed maritime photographer Jean Guichard has undertaken a series of helicopter flights to take new images of the finest lighthouses all over the North Atlantic, from the US and Canada to Iceland, the British Isles, and France. Guichard perfectly captures the symbolic strength of his subject matter, producing captivating images in all seasons. Author Ken Trethewey relates the history of lighthouses along the Atlantic coast, highlighting both their common past but also the characteristics specific to each country or region. The book is completed by a detailed guide giving technical details of all the lighthouses photographed, a brief history of each light, and visitor's information where applicable. Author Biography: Jean Guichard spent his childhood on the coast of Brittany before completing his military service in the French navy, sailing the treacherous waters off northern Canada and Iceland. He took up photography on his return and has since been active as a photo-journalist, initially covering internal French politics, but soon branching out to international news and later to maritime photography. His friendship with yachtsman Eric Tabarly inspired him to begin his unique study of lighthouses nearly fifteen years ago. Guichard's work has been featured on the covers of Newsweek and Paris Match and his cards, posters and calendars of maritime subjects sell hundreds of thousands of copies every year. Ken Trethewey, a descendant of the lighthouse keepers of Eddystone, Britain's most famous lighthouse, is the founder and chairman of the Lighthouse Society of Great Britain. For the past five years he has written, published, and continually updated his Encyclopedia of Lighthouses.