Jacques Botte

Photos

Sixty years in twenty-seven frames, grouped by chapter.

Roots

A small boy in a red helmet on a wooden sled in the snow, Soumoy, 1968.
Soumoy. Five years old, on the sled, red helmet.1968
Jacques in the snow with his red helmet and his favourite red toy car, winter 1968.
The red-helmet winter. Ready to be the fastest.1968
A 1960s school class photograph; Jacques is the small boy at the bottom right, sitting on his eldest brother’s lap.
On my eldest brother’s lap, bottom right.1960s
A school excursion group photograph, 1974 or 1975.
School trip, 1974 or 1975.1974
A reunion of former residents of the village of Soumoy.
Les Anciens de Soumoy: the village remembers itself.2018

The Craft

Portrait of Jacques Botte wearing the Toptronic® five-stars cap and jacket against a white background.
The Toptronic® five stars.2016
Jacques wearing a pullover printed with the slogan Adding SMTR to Humans.
Adding SMTR to Humans — Sensing, Measuring, Testing, Reporting.2022
Headshot of Jacques Botte in a lab coat at work.
At the bench.1990s
A second portrait of Jacques in his lab coat.
The engineer’s uniform.1990s
An early low-resolution digital portrait of Jacques.
Early digital days.2000s
Jacques Botte on a yellow SYM scooter on a Taipei street, December 2015.
Taipei. The yellow scooter.2015
Jacques Botte in Taipei, the city that became a second home, 2015.
Taipei, a second home.2015
A street scene from Taipei, 2015.
The streets of Taipei.2015

Journeys

A panoramic view of the Grand Canyon, a regular destination since 1998, photographed in 2015.
The Grand Canyon. A regular destination since 1998.2015
The Colorado River seen from the rim of the Grand Canyon, 2015.
The Colorado River, far below.2015

The Engineer's Eye

A Cathay Pacific seatback touchscreen photographed during a flight.
An engineer never stops reading signals, even at 35,000 feet.2019
The control panel of an aircraft seat.
Every interface tells a story.2019

Personal

A poster of Belgian beer labels hanging on a wall at home.
Belgium, the beer country.2016
A longboard next to a helmet hand-painted with the name Jacques Botte.
The helmet says the name, so nobody has to ask.2016
Jacques Botte wearing the helmet hand-painted with his name.
The painted helmet, still in use.2016

Today

A full-body portrait of Jacques at home.
At home, Taipei.2018
Jacques at home, looking back over his shoulder, smiling.
Caught mid-turn.2018
Side profile of Jacques Botte’s old Nissan Elgrand van, 2023.
The old Elgrand. Not for sale.2023
The 2004 Nissan Elgrand parked in a tropical driveway, 2024.
A 2004 model, twenty-two years old, and still the favourite.2024
A selfie of Jacques wearing a Fred Flintstone t-shirt, 2024.
A nice day, 2024.2024
Jacques with his daughter at her graduation, Monash University, Australia.
My daughter’s graduation, Monash University, Australia.2010

Do It Now.