When the young German André Perlstein came to Paris, the ‘70’s had just blown in on the heels of the rollicking ‘60’s. Everything was changing in a France that had just buried its leader. From De Gaulles to La Boisserie, it was the somber summing up of 60 dark years of world wars and colonialism » writes Denis Jeambar in his book « Chronics of the ‘70’s » recently published by the Editios du Seuil and already a best-seller. Among the pictures featured, Perlstein’s young neighbor on the rue de Saussure, Isabelle Adjani at 15. For the magazine « Elle », his iconic pictures of Serge Gainsbourg dressed in a kimono, or Roman Polanski with Sharon Tate on the rue des Beaux Arts in Paris. « You must understand, » commented Perlstein, « I’m just a hoodlum ! I was caught stealing mopeds when I was a kid, and the police gave me a choice, prison or the army. I chose the army, and that’s where I became a photographer!” His timeless pictures recorded an era with passion and verve, moving observers with their emotion and optimism.
Michel Puech