Péi Brilé / Pays Brûlé / Burnt Land

'Péi Brilé' is a project by Maxime Brygo that reconsiders the myths of Réunion Island through the figure of Robinson, a symbol of survival, humility and self-reliance. Through personal encounters with people living outside mainstream society in the hard-to-reach mountains, he reflects both on the island’s colonial history and examines what it means to inhabit a place. The book brings together a range of visual and textual materials, such as black-and-white images of mountains, colour landscapes and portraits of the island’s current inhabitants living in its recesses and hollows. The visuals are accompanied by historical and poetic texts about Réunion, mixing eras and myths.