Sumptuous, snow-covered Dents de Bertol, towering aboveArolla in the Val d'Hérens. This black-and-white photograph highlights a region of the Swiss Alps that is still very much in the wild. A paradise for ski tourers in springtime.

In my body of work, human presence is rare. The conditions don't lend themselves to it. But on this spring day in 2018, fate decided otherwise. I was taking advantage of a lull in the winds to go to summit de la Tête Blanche. As I neared the Bertol hut, after many hours of effort, I suddenly caught sight of them. Two high-mountain skiers about to take to the slopes of the Dents de Bertol. I grabbed my camera and immortalized the scene. The angle of this magnificent slope invites adventure. The purity of its snow and its elegant lines give us the irrepressible urge to join the lucky climbers at its summit. The rock soars like a hymn to the mountain's fervour.

In the background, the northern and central summits des Bouquetins seem to watch over the Dents de Bertol. Wise turrets dominate the surroundings. Few mountaineers climb their steep walls. But they can be admired from many parts of the Alps. Here, the mountains offer us two sides of themselves. Powerful and magical, fiery and venerable.