Robert Doisneau Gare in Carlux is, to say the least, an original place in the Dordogne. In the heart of the Périgord Noir, this former disused station has been rehabilitated by the Pays de Fénelon community of communes, turning it into a photographic art gallery, the only permanent exhibition dedicated to the French painter, as well as the headquarters of the tourist office and the new station cafe.
Located along the D703 connecting the A20 passing through Souillac and Sarlat, this station has been in operation since the end of the 19th century. The railway connected Bordeaux to Aurillac. “Abandoned track, the station has fallen into an advanced state of disrepair since 1980, when the municipality restored it,” Patrick Bonnefon testifies. He is not yet the chairman of the intercommunity.
Abandoned when the line was stopped in 1980, Carlux station has been infested with brambles, the walls and joinery tagged, the windows broken, as shown in this photo taken from the greenway running alongside the old platform.
But when his first mandate began in 2014, he decided to breathe new life into the space. “In 2015 the Regional Council announced a call for proposals for projects by NOTT, the New Organization of the Tourist Territory, and we proposed that the railway station become an innovative tourist point, in the countryside and not in the main tourist spots,” explains. But why choose a photographer like Robert Doisneau?
The photographic art gallery dedicated to Robert Doisneau opens on the ground floor with a large photograph of the photographer, accompanied by a text written by his own daughters, about his arrival in the Dordogne and his attachment to the area.
A big project
A chance meeting, a passion… In 2010, Patrick Bonnefon was marked by a photo of Robert Doisneau on the platform of the Carlux station, exhibited at the Prehistoric Interpretation Center in Les Eyzies (24). The photographer spent his holidays with loved ones in the Périgord Noir, at the beginning of the paid time off, holidays and tourism that the department still benefits from.
The project was launched and inaugurated in April 2018. The total cost of the work is 1.5 million euros, 80% of which is subsidized by Europe, the state, the region, the ministry and the parliamentary reserve. In addition to the gallery, the station hosts the Pays de Fénelon tourist office in its center. On the second floor there is a room where it is possible to hold meetings, conferences, trainings, etc.
In the gallery on the first floor, you can view the photographer’s previously unpublished photographs, illustrating “slices of life” in the Dordogne and neighboring Lot. The photographs are taken directly from Robert Doisneau’s negatives and are framed by his longtime framer.
But the main one remains the gallery dedicated largely to Robert Doisneau in the right wing of the station. On the ground floor, about forty photos about the beginnings of paid holidays and tourism in Périgord with photos of Robert Doisneau and his relatives. On the first floor, a second gallery, this time about local life, with “characters” and slices of life.
A small reconstructed laboratory makes it possible to rediscover with the help of digital technology how film works: photoisolation, developer tank, stop bath, fixer and rinse. The tool is mainly used for school audiences.
And finally, a temporary exhibition in the left wing of the first floor makes it possible to welcome other photographers all year round. The entire gallery is freely accessible. On the ground floor, in the left wing, there is still a café-restaurant belonging to the municipality and under lease management. The old railway line has become a busy green cycle route.
With more than 60,000 visitors in five years, the site has become a place of sharing between locals, visitors to the Périgord and tourists from all walks of life.