Art, Love and Rivalry: The Story of Kiki

It escapes me. The first time I saw the face of Alice Prin… but I remember the feeling it gave me. It was a feeling that remains with me to this day. She had evoked something in me.

Kiki had a vampiric goth look that resonated with me, especially as someone who mirrored this pale skin and kohl-eyed look l I had acquired in my teenage years. She was always cloaked in darkness and I remember how her eyes danced as she smiled for the camera - just captivating.

Man Ray has always been a favourite photographer of mine, the simplicity of his work struck me in a world where technicality seemed to equal success. So having a book that featured both of them was an exciting prospect. As much as I adore Man Ray’s work I was more drawn to the stories and multi-faceted nature of Prin (who later became Kiki de Montparnasse). This felt like her book and not his. I have read articles about her online, sifted through old photographs and read books about her but nothing touched the sides like Mark Braude’s book Kiki Man Ray: Art, Love and Rivalry in 1920s Paris.

An influential figure within the Parisian avant-garde scene, Kiki was a performer, an artist’s model and an artist herself (unfortunately the latter seems to have been lost due to her association with her being a muse). She experimented in an artistic sense led by her adventurous nature, Kiki would try anything – in today’s terms she would be considered a performance artist. Kiki as she later became was crowned Queen of Montparnasse by those who recognised her as an artist, she simply imbued the artistic spirit that existed in Paris at that time and became an equal within the community.

What this book does so well is elevate Kiki as an artist in her own right. For years many women have been hidden behind their artistic husbands or partners, known as “the wife of” or “the muse of” without really knowing who these women truly are or what they are capable of. Braude’s writing brings her to the forefront and paints such an exquisite picture of her. It made me feel so extraordinarily happy to see her have her moment, even if she didn’t get to see it herself.