82 - Eugène ATGET (1857–1927)

Eugène ATGET (1857–1927) Cabaret, 31 rue du Bac (7th arrondissement), 1911 Entrance to the “J. Verdier” cabaret beneath a radiating transom arch, framed by two winged Victory figures in relief and a bearded mascaron; “Absinthe – Vermouth” display window, with a clock visible inside; the National Library’s stamp visible in the image. Silver print 22.5 x 18.5 cm Inscription on the reverse: Pencil annotations: “Cabaret 31 rue du Bac. (7th arr.) 1911 - BNF,” “p511,” “Photo 6,” “7),” “X2” in the center Provenance: former collection of Jean-Marie Drot Bibliography: *Atget Paris*, introduction by Laure Beaumont-Maillet, Paris, Hazan, 1992, reproduced on p. 511. 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 “reference material 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.