Libraries mean a special place to us all, a place to get away to get lost to ourselves and rediscover ourselves again through books. These books intrigue us and warm our hearts whilst reading them in a magical and beautifully exciting place. That’s how a Franck Bohbot would describe a library to you, originally from France this photographer has an unreserved love for reading and upon this fondness, he has decided to go round the world photographing beautiful libraries. Now living in New York since 2013, Frank has gone great distances to capture the beauty of Libraries through the lens of a camera.
Bibliothèque du Sénat, Paris
The smell of old ink, pages of old books and artifacts hang in the air in most of the world’s libraries, rows and rows of the book make them all seem to look alike. Comfortable furniture and centuries-old architecture distinguish some but one common thing to all libraries is that they all house knowledge and so much history.
Bibliothèque Mazarine, Paris
Biblioteca Angelica, Rome
Bibliothèque Nationale de France and the Biblioteca Angelica in Rome is one of those libraries he still intends to visit and capture on film. Franck Bohbot’s photo series ‘House of Books’ describes several libraries in as much detail as a picture can show.
Bibliothèque Nationale de France, Paris
Boston Public Library, Boston, USA
Officially opened within an old schoolhouse the Boston Public library in 1848 had over 16,000 books, what became obvious was that they would require another more suitable accommodation within a short period. Boylston Street provided these new accommodations within the same year of opening and remains its current address today.
BNF Site François Mitterrand, Paris
Bohbot is a 35-year-old freelance photographer, who was born in the city of Lights in France. His main area of interest in 2008 shifted to urban landscapes, public spaces and lately environmental portraits.2013 saw him win an international photo award amongst prior ones. Though he considers his latest work i.e. the House of books series a work in progress it has enjoyed some moderate media attention, from being hosted on a number of well-ranked web sites, to the New York Times and also CNN International and popular wired magazine. Other places you would find photographed in Bohbots dossier include train stations, swimming pools, courts, theaters, and swimming pools. To be able to photograph these places in a documentary-style whilst capturing the unique atmosphere of the location is Bohbots’ pride.
Bibliothèque Sainte Geneviève, Paris
Home to the Abbey of St Genevieve and over 2Mllion documents, this university and the public library have exquisite and detailed architecture.
Bibliothèque Interuniversitaire de la Sorbonne, Paris
Studying in this inter-university library can be blissful, with its magnificent windows. This Library is located in Paris.
Biblioteca Vallicelliana in Rome, Italy
Frank Bohbot puts his work in a compelling phrase and states that the pictures we see are made with his heart, while photography in itself are moments of happiness, pain, and solitude. The Oratorio dei Filippini complex houses one of the most incredible libraries. Established in 1565, this library contains a lot of artifacts; one such is the Bible of Alcuin from the 9th century. The time of reformation and Counter-Reformation, have many well-preserved documents in this Italian Library. The Library was built by Francesco Borromini in the Piazza Della Chiesa Nuov
Photo Credits: franckbohbot.com
