Sophie Calle f.1953
For months I followed strangers on the street. For the pleasure of following them, not because they particularly interested me. I photographed them without their knowledge, took note of their movements, then finally lost sight of them and forgot them. At the end of January 1981, on the streets of Paris, I followed a man whom I lost sight of a few minutes later in the crowd. That very evening, quite by chance, he was introduced to me at an opening. During the course of our conversation, he told me that he was planning a imminent trip to Venice. I decided to follow him.
Suite VĂŠnitienne 1981
The Shadow 1981
On April 1981, at my request, my mother went to a detective agency. She hired to follow me, to report my daily activities, and to provide photographic evidence of my existence
The sleepers 1979
SOPHIE CALLE
I asked 24 people to give me a few hours of their sleep. To come and sleep in my bed. To let themselves be looked at and photographed. To answer questions. To each participant I suggested an eight hour stay. The project took place 8 days
Birthday ceremony 1981
On my birthday I always worry that people will forget me. In 1980,to relieve myself from anxiety, I decided that every year, if possible on 9 October, I would invite to dinner the exact number of people corresponding to my age, including a stranger chosen by one of my guests. I did note use the presents received on these occasions. I kept them as tokens of affection. In 1993, at the age of forty, put an end to this ritual. 1981: 1 bouquet of flowers 1 book by Mario Vargas Llosa: La Maison verte NRF Gallimard Editions 1 work by David Rocheline (mirror, gilded wood, marshmallows, chocolates, candies and plastic doll) 1 pair of cream coloured gloves, knitted cotton, Jean-Charles Brosseau brand 1 bottle of eau de vie labelled “Pour les 28 ans de Sophie Calle” 1 compass 1 book by Henry Miller: Insomnia ou le diable en liberté Stock Editions 1 red satin mini-dress decorated with black plastic grapes and one red mask 1 miniature chair in blue Formica 1 Vedette brand washing machine (Given the excessive dimensions of said object and its undeniable utility, it is here represented by a Darty buyer's warranty) 1 black mask 28 fruit flavoured lollipops 1 photograph by Manuel Alvarez Bravo entitled: Le rêve éveillé 1 bottle of champagne, Moët & Chandon 1 book by Maurice Achard and Anne-Marie Métailié: Les années soixante en noir et blanc Amm Editions 1 cream coloured umbrella with a dog-shaped handle 1 flower-petal shaped ashtray that can be disassembled 28 drawing pads 28 earrings (none of them making a pair) 1 book by Henri-Alexis Baatsch: Roman Polonais Pierre Bordas Editions 1 book by Marie José Parra-Aledo: Images fugitives Pierre Bordas Editions 4 white buttons
Exhibition view at the Camden Art Centre, London, 1999
The Hotel 1981
On Monday, February 16, 1981, I was hired as a temporary chambermaid for three weeks in a Venetian hotel. I was assigned twelve bedrooms on the fourth floor. In the course of my cleaning duties, I examined the personal belongings of the hotel guests and observed through details lives which remained unknown to me. On Friday, March 6, the job came to an end.
The address book 1983
In the summer of 1983, a french newspaper asked me to write a series of articles. Not long before I had found an address book. I decided to photocopy the contents before sending it back anonymously to its owner, whose address was given on the endpaper. I then contacted those people whose names where noted down, and ask them to tell me about the owner. Thus I would get to know this man through his friends, his acquaintances. I would try to discover who he was without ever meeting him and to procure a portrait of him, over an uncertain length of time, that would depend on the willingness of his friends to talk about him and on the turn taken events.
The Blind 1986
Double Game 1999
The Chromatic Diet 1998
To be like Maria, during the week of December 8 to 14, 1997, I ate Orange on Monday, Red on Tuesday, White on Wednesday, and Green on Thursday. Since Paul Auster had given his character the other days off, I made Friday Yellow and Saturday Pink. As for Sunday, I decided to devote it to the full spectrum of colors, setting out for six guests the six menus tested over the week.
Days under the sign of B, C, &W
To be like Maria, I spend the day of Tuesday, March 10, 1998, under the sign of B for Big-time Blonde Bimbo