Thursday, November 08, 2012

Once a brothel, now a nightclub!


Thanks to my new portraits blog, I get to meet interesting Parisians like the one in this photo... Her name is Sylvanie de Lutèce, she is a story teller and specializes in  the "dark" side of Paris! She knows everything about famous criminals like Jules Bonnot, the head of the Bonnot gang or Jacques Mesrine, where and how the guillotine was tested in the first place... and she also knows the Pigalle area (an area known for its red lights...) like the back of her hand. Precisely, she had me photograph her in this area, at Le Carmen, a former brothel, now turned into a beautiful bar and nightclub (look at the ceilings!). One last thing... This place is called Le Carmen, because Georges Bizet is said to have written his famous opera there (no proof though!).

12 comments:

  1. I can picture you on the floor of Le Carmen, taking this great portrait of a very interesting woman. I'll bet she was pleased with it.

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  2. Looks great. Beautiful place. I love the baby grand piano.

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  3. Those are some gorgeous ceilings! I can only imagine how beautiful the rest of the building is. Very nice photo, Eric. Slight Tenin Perspective, no?

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  4. Sylvanie's stories sound fascinating, and this building looks gorgeous! Always enjoy the Tenin perspective :-)

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  5. I'd love to tour this place. Wow. And I'm going to click every one of your links.

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  6. The leading lines of those pillars is so appealing in this portrait. What fun historic research Sylvanie gets to do (and thanks for sharing some with us. . .so interesting!). Warm, fun shot!
    -Kim

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  7. Gorgeous! Must go there next time I'm in Paris.

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  8. @Petrea. I actually have a little video tour of the place with Sylvanie, but I did not have the time to edit it and post it - and it will be in French only...

    But it's really a great place.

    @Christie "light Tenin Perspective, no?" LOL Yes. And yes all the ceilings are stunning.

    I was very lucky to see this place.

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  9. Extraordinaire moment :D
    Très beau portrait, liens très intéressants, belle qualité. Vraiment bien.

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  10. Merci Anonymous. Ça me va droit au coeur ;-) Et il y en a d'autres à venir...

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