Belleville

Thomas Boivin

2023 — Paris, France

About this series

Belleville is a place that is both emblematic of Paris’ popular notions and constantly changing. In the eastern part of Paris, it is a multicultural area that attracts artists and newcomers. 
From the moment I moved there, I began photographing the streets and people. My most meaningful experience was photographing people. Although the photographs hardly depict the city, I find that they convey the sensation I felt walking the streets of Belleville: A combination of beauty and decay, joy and sadness, the feeling of warm light and the bittersweet sensation that one can experience walking around all day, looking for a stranger’s gaze.

Photographer: Thomas Boivin
Nationality: French
Based in: Paris, France
Website: www.thomasboivin.com
Instagram: @boivin.thomas

Working primarily in monochrome, Thomas Boivin documents the streets of Paris and its suburbs with a keen eye for portraits. He also enjoys still life and more intimate pictures of his immediate family. His last book, Belleville, was published by Stanley/Barker in April 2022, together with an exhibition at the Fondation A. Stichting. Belleville has been exhibited at the Maison Robert Doisneau in spring and will now travel to Le Château d’Eau in Toulouse. His next book, Ménilmontant, will be published by Stanley/Barker in autumn in 2023.
His work can be seen in the collections of Neuflize OBC, the Collection Bachelot, Paris Collection, La Bibliothèque Nationale de France, and the Fondation A Stichting. Thomas Boivin lives and works in Paris.