Last fall, a band seized and occupied a hotel particulier on the place des Vosges in Paris. I wrote about the incident.

This weekend, I was able to visit the site. It’s a remarkable historic building, with an inner courtyard, a terrace, large rooms, and a lovely staircase.

courtyard

staircase, polychrome beams

salon

I know that the term, “pirate”, is used today for films starring Johnny Depp or for persons alleged to have infringed intellectual property law, but I think that it’s altogether apt to designate the band that took a fancy to the property, then took possession of it by extra-legal means.

The pirates don’t seem to have been destructive or careless. The property is in a decent state of repair, and the pirates have put up some decorations. This having been said, being a pirate does seem to require consuming lots of beer and flicking cigarette butts out of windows.

lots of butts

cute touch

The pirates also seem image-conscious, probably from concern of impending expulsion. I entered their lair under cover of an art happening. The Puccini-esque “La Bohème” ambiance was paired with concession sales; for revolutionaries, these pirates have a fine market sense.

Truth be told, during my visit I saw many visitors but no art. I tried to be uniformly pleasant and found most of the occupants to be agreeable. The one exception was a young man whom I made uncomfortable by photographing the salon. He told me that there would be a show but no visits that day, a proprietary instinct that I found cheeky coming from someone who has taken the license of occupying the premises without obtaining anyone’s consent or paying anyone rent.