The romantic decadence of Paris nightlife in the 1920s and 30s (eternalized most famously, perhaps, by the photographs of Brassai) comes to life afresh in this series of sensuous photos shot on location in former bordellos where the lavish decors have survived intact.

Vee Speers, an Australian fine-art photographer who has lived near the infamous Rue St. Denis red-light district in Paris for 14 years, has created edgy photos that play with seduction, sensuality and femininity.

“From my window I can see the girls waiting downstairs in the doorways, and it has always fascinated me how these women display their bodies up and down the street like gaudy trinkets in a second-hand shop,“ says Speers.

“Although I created my own interpretation from historical references and old images, I primarily wanted to use the idea as a gateway to something more profound.

"The art of seduction fascinates me. I love the game — you can dress yourself up and act out a role, and that sets you free to create your own stories, your own mysteries. And it gives you power. I tried to capture all that when I photographed these women, none of whom are models, as such.

“It was also very important to me to reproduce my photographs for this series using a hand-rendered Fresson charcoal process which gives a more authentic, painterly quality to the images.”

Speers' photos are being exhibited through October 8, 2005, in London at the Stephanie Hoppen Gallery, as part of a group show, "Women Photographing Women."

BORDELLO
by Vee Speers
with a foreword by Karl Lagerfeld
120 Pages, 90 Photos (black-and-white and color), 4 music CDs
Publisher: earbooks.net