The Fisherman, Nature and Habitat in Auvernier
7 January 2024
Artist, hunter, father, husband, philosopher, ecologist and fisherman, all these characteristics apply to Denis Junod d’Auvernier (canton of Neuchâtel).
Junod is one of around thirty professional fishermen on Lake Neuchâtel’s shores. His life story is written down in a recently published biography: “De fils en père. Denis Junod” (From father to son. Denis Junod).
Hauterive, Laténium, 12 October 2020. Denis Junod (l), Françoise Jeanneret-Gris (r)
The book is more than just a biography. It is also a history of the lake, its flora, fauna and nature. He knows what he is talking about when he speaks about the lake, its fish flo,ra and fauna on the shores. As a hunter, he also respects animals and nature.
“C’est comme si nous n’avions pas compris que l’humanité et tous les écosystèmes font partie du même arbre. L’humanité appartient à ce système mondial, mais elle agit comme si elle était extérieure“.
Denis Junod (on the right) in his pêcherie in Auvernier
He was born in 1953 in La Côte-aux-Fées in the canton of Neuchâtel. The lake was far away. A future as a fisherman was unlikely. He spent his childhood in the woods and meadows.
His first encounter with Lake Neuchâtel and fishing occurred in the village of Saint-Aubin. His father worked in the watchmaking industry and was an enthusiastic fisherman. He inspired Denis. At that time, around 1960, there were still many trout in the lake. It was even the most caught fish. A few decades later, the trout has almost wholly disappeared.
His habitat in Auvernier
He got acquainted with and appreciated poetry, literature, philosophy and history in school. He attended the gymnasium. They have always remained his guide in interpreting reality and life. With this background, he is also interested in (local) politics and society and their historical context.
He moved to the village of Serrières around 1963 and lived for the first time on the shores of the lake. He started painting in this period. He describes his paintings as Art Brut. The culture of the Maya and the Incas inspires him. The images of paintings in the book bear witness to his artistic talent.
After school, he wanted to become a fisherman. After an apprenticeship in nearby Saint-Aubin, he rented his fisherman’s hut in Auvernier in 1973 and received a fishing permit from the canton. He is still there.
The village’s coat of arms contains a fish and grapes for a good reason. At that time, Auvernier was still a village of fishermen and winegrowers. Fishing is still his passion, work, experience and way of life.
“J’ai une spiritualité sans Dieu. Ou bien : j’appellerais Dieu la grande matrice universelle qui régit le monde du vivant. Je ne crois pas en Salut que nous propose la religion. Quand je suis sur le lac, je sens cette force universelle qui nous enveloppe tous. Ma foi est là, au sein de cette nature féconde. Le lac est ma cathédrale“.
He has experienced life as a fisherman: fines, trials and conflicts with the police and the authorities (“Un anarchiste respectueux“), ups and downs, the tragedies of drowned fishermen and the enjoyment of the beautiful sunrise and the panorama of Les Trois Bernoises, the Dents du Midi and the Mont Blanc in the south and the Jura in the north-west.
The state of nature and Lake Neuchâtel worries him. However, he is an optimist and has confidence in humanity’s ability to adapt as long the principles of nature are respected.
His philosophy:
“Dans nos sociétés occidentales hypertechnologiques, l’intelligence est liée à la réussite scolaire. Dans d’autres sociétés, l’intelligence est une question d’adaptation à un milieu donné. Le savoir-faire, le respect des aînés, l’utilisation d’outils spécialisés et l’agilité, c’est dans les sociétés indigènes premières qu’on les trouve. Leur intelligence est liée à la survie du groupe. Les livres ne sont pas les seules fournitures de l’intelligence. La nature m’en a appris bien bien plus. Toute est relatif“.
(Françoise Jeanneret-Gris, De fils en père. Denis Junod, Bière 2020. The phrases are from Denis Junod and are mentioned in the book).
