EXHIBITION "NICE OF YESTERDAY... IN CHARLES BÉBERT'S LENS"

OCTOBER 17, 2024 - MARCH 2, 2025

MASSÉNA MUSEUM

Yesterday's Nice exhibition... in the lens of Charles Bébert plunges us into a bygone era, that of the 60s, 70s and 80s, in the heart of the city of Nice.

Through a series of black and white photographs on silver paper, taken by the talented journalist-reporter-photographer Charles Bébert, this exhibition brings to life emblematic places of the Côte d'Azur capital, while evoking a gentle nostalgia for the past.

THE NICE OF YESTERYEAR

The Promenade des Anglais, the Place Masséna, the Avenue Jean Médecin (formerly Avenue de la Victoire), the Port of Nice... These symbolic places of the city have been immortalized by the sensitive eye of Charles Bébert, thus creating a unique visual archive of the city of Nice. Each photograph tells a story, that of a city in full evolution, but also that of its inhabitants, actors and witnesses of daily life at that time.

CELEBRITIES AND ANONYMOUS PEOPLE

A link between these images, celebrities who have come to taste the sweetness of life on the Côte d'Azur mingle with the people of Nice captured in their everyday lives. A newspaper seller at his kiosk, travellers arriving at the Nice train station, supporters at the Stade du Ray, all these moments captured by Charles Bébert offer an intimate and authentic dive into the Nice of yesterday.

AN INTIMATE AND UNIVERSAL LOOK

The exhibition also highlights the archival work carried out by his son, Stéphane Bébert, who rediscovered these photographic treasures among the thousands of negatives kept in the Chasseur d'images archive collection. This intimate look at a bygone era complements the exhibition Nice, my city, my neighborhood presented at the Villa Masséna, thus offering another look at the city and its neighborhoods through another period of its history.

A PHOTOGRAPHIC LEGACY

Charles Bébert, born in Oran in 1936, was introduced to photography at the age of 14 alongside his father. Together, they founded the Chasseur d'images brand. Moving to Nice in 1963, he found a sweetness of life that reminded him of his Mediterranean roots. A correspondent for several news agencies, in France and internationally, for more than 50 years, Bébert has captured some of the greatest events that have marked the French Riviera. Now 88 years old, Charles Bébert continues to roam the streets, camera slung over his shoulder, ready to immortalize the precious moments of everyday life.