Although nothing initially predisposed Thomas Crauwels to become both a photographer and a mountaineer, ABOVE, his first book, proves that he has emerged as one of the few photographers capable of capturing such striking images of summits all exceeding 4,000 meters.
Through his lens, we gain access to extraordinary landscapes. His black-and-white approach, mastery of contrast and light, and a maturity honed through countless explorations allow him to elevate the mountains without reducing them to mere stereotypical representations. Each of his images is the result of a decisive moment, meticulously planned and executed--whether it's the logistics of his expeditions or the mental construction of the images he seeks to create. Detailed map studies, the perfect weather window, and a formal pursuit of purity all serve his dual aim: to evoke emotion and preserve the magic of a fleeting moment.
ABOVE is not just another mountain book. It tells the story of a photographer's deep passion for a mountain range whose magnificent beauty he captures with profound insight. The repetition of black-and-white images emphasizes the photographer's fascination with the vertigo of a summit, the pure line of a ridge, the white glow of a hanging glacier, the harmony of a peak, the slope of an abyss, and the verticality of a wall.
Throughout the chapters, Crauwels becomes a messenger of contemplation, where aesthetics are infused, if not with mysticism, then certainly with his quest for meaning. In a slow process of idealization, the mountains take on the qualities of a sacred figure, appearing and disappearing with reverence.
In this sense, Thomas Crauwels can be seen as an heir to the French Romantic writers who, in the late 18th century, began to discover the mountain landscape, just as Horace-Bénédict de Saussure initiated the scientific conquest of the Alpine peaks in 1787. Crauwels follows in the footsteps of Rousseau, allowing the mountains to ignite his poetic imagination. His work expresses the unbreakable bond between wild, untamed nature and the intense emotions humans are capable of experiencing. The mountains stir something universal within us all--from the sublime to the mystical--offering an aesthetic adventure as much as a physical one. Photography, like mountaineering, is fundamentally about a body in motion, a body in action. Are the mountains an inaccessible land, the last bastion of true freedom? An inhuman terrain?
ABOVE demonstrates the extent to which geography and photography intertwine when the mountain becomes a stage for their sacred union--a domain of beauty and chaos to be conquered. The mountain, as the ultimate site of a sublime experience, brings us back to the root of the word: what rises above us is, by definition, sublime. In "contact with extremes," Thomas Crauwels understands that he is pursuing both the impossible and the ideal. This version refines the language to create a smoother, more engaging narrative while maintaining the original meaning and style.
