Have You Been to Nouvelle Athènes in Paris?

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Have You Been to Nouvelle Athènes in Paris?

The Paris Vignettes series features the inspired work of street photographer William “Bill” O’Such in themed installments.

Ask your Parisian friends about Nouvelle Athènes and you’ll find that few, if any, have heard of it. I discovered it through my favorite way to unearth unknown parts of Paris: www.greeters.paris. The “greeters” are not tour guides, so don’t expect deep insights, but rather they are city residents, typically retired, who love to show their neighborhood. There are about 200 in Paris, and on every trip over the past 25+ years, I’ve discovered something new while practicing my French (note: many do speak English). For this walk, Gilles showed me around Nouvelle Athènes, where he has lived since he was a child. Starting at Notre Dame de Lorette church, he noted that the word “Lorette” was once a slang term in old Paris for prostitutes who helped “inspire” the writers who lived here.

Wandering through the streets, Gilles shared that this area was once active with writers, then gentrified, and now is trendy, even with a NYC-like name, SoPi (South of Pigalle). Interesting details (“Nouvelle Athènes – façade 21”) on older buildings are mixed in with newer ones, with one of the centerpieces being a circle with a statue of Paul Gavarni (“Nouvelle Athènes – Paul Gavarni”), who spent time with a number of lorettes. Apparently, the metro station is fairly original and is adjacent to a wonderfully green and quiet park (“Nouvelle Athènes – Parc”).

The neighborhood has many shops (“Nouvelle Athènes – Retoucherie”), with well-tended plants in several of the windows above them. As we progressed north towards Pigalle, we passed the original Cabaret du Chat Noir (“Nouvelle Athènes – Chat Noir”), along with a remarkable glass-front building under renovation that will reopen as a new restaurant. Gilles convinced the workers to let me in to take some photos (“Nouvelle Athènes – Vitrine”). Inside, the various courtyards reveal magnificent buildings (“Nouvelle Athènes – Cour”), along with a charming, garden-like home (“Nouvelle Athènes – maison”). As we walked out of one courtyard, I looked down and spotted a cover that Gilles didn’t recognize, and after some internet research, I found it was from a company, established in 1876, responsible for bathroom fixtures throughout much of Paris (“Nouvelle Athènes – Noël Chapadaux”). A good reminder that looking down is as important as looking up in Paris!

In the courtyard of the Société des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques on Rue Ballu, there was a beautiful memorial to all the writers who died in wars (“Nouvelle Athènes – auteurs morts”). Since we were running a bit late and I had already visited the Musée de la Vie Romantique, which is a must-see, we skipped it and sat down at a café (“Nouvelle Athènes – Le Valois”) for a refreshing beverage on a warm August day.

Watch for a future, greeter-inspired “vignette” on Bagnolet! If you’d like some photographic previews, please visit my Facebook page.

Nouvelle Athènes, auteurs morts. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, Chat Noir. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, cour. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, facade. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, Le Valois. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, maison. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, Noel Chapadaux. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, parc. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, Paul Gavarni. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, retoucherie. Photo: William O’Such

Nouvelle Athènes, vitrine. Photo: William O’Such

Lead photo credit : Nouvelle Athènes, Société des Auteurs. Photo: William O'Such

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William was introduced to silver halide photography by his father, Chester J. O’Such, via the family’s Ansco reflex camera and home darkroom. After college, William worked as a photographic engineer at Eastman Kodak, where he began to learn the art of photography. With his first SLR, a Canon AE-1, he photographed his inaugural voyage to Paris in 1982. This early spark turned into full passion when William became a Kodak expatriate in Paris from 1995-99. Before returning to the USA, William and his future wife Ineke bought an apartment in the Marais district. Inspired by Bresson, William continues to visit Paris at least twice a year to wander the streets, camera in hand, looking for the next vignette. His photos are available for sale by visiting www.osuchphotography.com