Laurent Bochet & Deyrolle
Laurent Bochet makes dying twice, and once by fire, a sadly beautiful event to behold. In 2008 he photographed the remains of Paris taxidermy shop (a cabinet of curiosities)– Deyrolle– after it burned.
Here is an excerpt of the interview with Laurent, I found on the site “Paris, by Appointment Only” (click on the link for the full interview)
“How did you get access to Deyrolle after the fire?
I knew the owner, Louis Albert de Broglie, so when I found out about the fire I contacted him. I was very curious about what had happened to the space and I wanted to see it for myself. When I got there I was completely shocked, it was so beautiful, but yet so sad. For an institution like Deyrolle, it was a dramatic event, not only for its historic importance, but also because how devastatingly beautiful the fire scene was.
Were there certain subjects that touched you more than others?
They all affected me equally. While photographing the animals I never stopped thinking about the fact that they once were alive. For me, it was criminal to put them in the trash without paying tribute to them somehow by taking their photo.”