Bordello Utopia

Maison Close a Bordello fantasy

This is a photographical romantization of the life in a “Maison Close” or in English a Brothel or Bordello. I have created sets to resemble this kind of atmosphere with models and actresses and actors playing the parts of prostitutes and costumers from different city’s and in different times.
To be able to participate myself in my own fantasy’s I have chosen to collaborate with another photographer in some of the shots. In this project the photographer apart from myself was Dimitri Lepetre. Most of the sets was created in Paris, but are supposed to take you on a journey into the forbidden sexual landscape of Bordellos world wide.
A special thanks to all who participated in this project with such a passion and at the same time with a great scoop of humor.

Some history.

State brothels/bordellos with regulated prices existed in ancient Athens, These brothels catered for a predominantly male clientele, with women of all ages and young men providing sexual services. In ancient Rome female slaves provided sexual services for soldiers, with brothels being located close to barracks and city walls. Brothels existed everywhere. The custom was to display candles to signal that they were open.
The practice of hosting prostitutes in these elaborate brothels spread to surrounding regions of Chinese cultural influence, notably in Japan after the sixth century AD where prostitutes and courtesans evolved to Japanese geisha. Again, the geisha of Japan emphasized good table manners, artistic skills, elegant styling and sophisticated, tactical conversational skills. Women joined brothels from all walks of life. The average prostitute was approximately age 21 but many were as young as thirteen or as old as 50. Typically thought of as an escape for young, poor, troubled women, brothels sometimes attracted those less expected. Trained musicians and singers sometimes were lured into it by their interest in easy money and fun times. Some others turned to brothels to get out of their boring, abusive, or otherwise unfulfilling marriages. Although they might be of various classes, ethnicities, and ages, most women who began or joined brothels had a shared goal: quick money . Ironically, many found themselves always indebted to their mistresses. Due to their lack of credit, a prostitute was unable to buy items necessary for her trade herself – powder, cosmetics, perfumes, and "evening wear" - but was forced to buy them through her Madam
During World War II, women drawn from throughout East Asia were forced into prostitution by the occupation armies of Imperial Japan These women were referred to as "comfort women" (jūgun-ianfu). During World War II in Europe, Nazy Germany created special spy bordellos like the famous “Salong Kitty “ where the prostitutes actually worked for the Gestapo collecting information from their costumers.