L’Abbaye de Nieul-sur-l’Autise

As part of a week exploring the charm of the Vendée, we spent an afternoon in the small village of Nieul-sur-l’Autise — a stop that turned out to be an unexpected highlight of the trip. Tucked away on the edge of the Marais Poitevin, Nieul is a place steeped in history. The village is best known for its former royal abbey, a remarkably well-preserved Romanesque site that has stood here since the 11th century.

The abbey church itself is an impressive space — barrel vaulting, paired columns, and two bell towers that seem to be doing their best to outlast everything else. And while the light wasn’t exactly flattering, we did our best to embrace the high contrast and call it “creative interpretation.”

While the church, with its two bell towers and powerful stone arches, is certainly worth a visit — it’s the exceptionally well-preserved romanesque cloister that will capture the attention of every photographer. A few years ago I did a project on the ruined abbeys of the Scottish borders, where no romanesque cloisters have survived so it was inspiring to be able to finally photograph one.

We’d arrived just after lunch, and the light was, let’s say, challenging but there was enough light filtering through the cloister’s arches creating an ever-shifting tapestry of shadows on the worn stone floor. There was a hushed quality to it all — as though time had slowed to allow us to really see the details: the subtle textures, the soft decay of centuries, the warm texture of the stone.