77 - Eugène ATGET (1857–1927)

Eugène ATGET (1857–1927) Le Cabaret Alexandre, 100 Boulevard de Clichy (18th arrondissement), 1910–1912 Close-up of the entrance: the letters “Le Cabaret Alexandre” hanging overhead, the “Brûlant Alexandre” sign, large fantastical figures made of papier-mâché framing the barred door, a poster board with photographic portraits leaning against the wall; the National Library’s stamp visible in the image. Silver print 18.5 x 24 cm Inscription on the reverse: Pencil annotations: “Cabaret Alexandre Bd de Clichy 100. 1910–1912 BNF (9th arr[?])”, “p734” Provenance: former collection of Jean-Marie Drot Bibliography: *Atget Paris*, introduction by Laure Beaumont-Maillet, Paris, Hazan, 1992, reproduced on p. 734. Born in Libourne in 1857, Eugène Atget worked as a sailor and then as an actor before devoting himself to photography around 1890. Settling on Rue Campagne-Première, he produced “documents for artists” and spent nearly forty years photographing old Paris: streets, courtyards, storefronts, signs, small trades, parks, and interiors. His thousands of photographs were acquired by the National Library, the Carnavalet Museum, and the Monuments Historiques, which saw them as an inventory of a city in the process of disappearing. Man Ray and the Surrealists, followed by Berenice Abbott—who saved a large portion of his collection—revealed the poetic dimension of his work. He died in Paris in 1927 and is considered one of the fathers of modern documentary photography.