When the young French photographer Jean-Vincent Simonet came across the book Les Chants de Maldoror (The Songs of Maldoror), he felt hugely attracted to the dark, theatrical and transgressive character. The cutting-edge book praising youth revolt, blasphemy and the victory of dream over reality was published in 1869 by Comte de Lautréamont. Jean-Vincent Simonet decided to revive the literary enigma by transforming the classic novel into a contemporary book and exhibition Maldoror. Simonet’s photos don’t literally follow the text of The Songs of Maldoror but are related to the universe of Lautremont: romanticism, chaos, bestiality, science, intimacy and literacy.
Maldoror was exhibited in Amsterdam (August 2015), Paris (November 2015), Brussels (March 2016) and London (May 2016). Each show propose a new vision of the project, mixing all the pictures of the project to create an overwhelming environment.