WILDER MANN: Ou la Figure du Sauvage — Charles Fréger, 2012

With WILDER MANN , Charles Fréger turns his lens on the pagan and folkloric masquerades of Europe, capturing the ancient, animistic figure of the "wild man" as it appears in seasonal rituals across Austria, Germany, France, Italy, and the Balkans. These are not carnival costumes—they are archetypes steeped in pre-Christian cosmology, rural myth, and seasonal survival. Fréger’s photographic style is both taxonomic and theatrical: participants are presented full-figure against foggy pastures, snowy fields, or neutral backdrops, emphasizing their constructed strangeness.

Technical Sheet
Title: WILDER MANN: Ou la Figure du Sauvage
Artist / Author: Charles Fréger
Date: 2012
Technique / Printing Method: Offset
Medium / Materials: Hardcover
Dimensions: approx. 21 × 26
Pages: Unstated
Language: French
Publisher: Thames & Hudson / Actes Sud
ISBN: 9782330007991
Condition: Near Fine