Les expositions passées

Philippe Perrin
"Paris' Mysteries"

"An evening just like any other"

No more interesting.
No less so …
Between my vodkas I was dragging on my cigarettes.
Everything wrapped in crude conversation.
Just like the night before …
I was with friends, the same as usual.
They came here out of habit, looking for a bit of company amongst the bottles of adulterated alcohol …
Mr X was there too.
In one corner of the room there was this guy who was insistent on introducing me.
I walked over to him.
We exchanged greetings but not our names.
We clinked our glasses.
And we drank …
A while later, I asked Mr X what this other guy did.
He smiled and said that he'd been an arts student for sixteen years but he wasn't even sure if he could read …"

Philippe Perrin

The "Mysteries of Paris" Exhibition being held at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie is not a simple illustration of Eugène Sue's novel, nor a transposition of the novelist as our century comes to a close. Rather it is a trip within Paris taking in various character studies whose underlying theme is one of night and darkness. These are not characters from roman noirs, they are characters who inspire one to write.