WHEN YOU SIT IN A METRO, A BAR, A RESTAURANT. WHEN YOU LOOK AROUND YOU AND SEE THE PEOPLE THAT SHARE YOUR SPACE. DO YOU EVER WONDER WHAT THEIR LIVES ARE LIKE. A MAN READING A PAPER, SEEMINGLY FOCUSING ON AN ARTICLE JUST TOO LONG AND NOT SEEING WHAT HE'S READING. A WOMAN CARRYING HER CHILD, BUT HER EYES GIVE AWAY HER MIND IS NOT WITH IT? WHAT ARE THEY THINKING OF? WHAT IS GOING ON IN THEIR MIND? WHAT ARE THE EVENTS THAT COLOR THEIR LIVES?
In 2012 we opened an article introducing you to Eric Guichaoua-Serra with that very same paragraph. And today looking back at a year colored by events that have left us scarred for life but with hope in our hearts for the year and years to come, his story seems more relevant than ever. A story that tells the tale of how immense sadness can drive to the creation of extraordinary beauty, on a pedestal of raw emotions. Eric Guichaoua-Serra is an artist. Not only is he a wonderful photographer, Eric is also a skilled musician and composer. Gifts of creativity Eric probably received on the day he was born back in 1964 but that only manifested themselves when Eric was 12 years old. Because at that age Eric experienced his first introduction to photography and his first introduction to the hard reality we call life.
When Eric Guichaoua-Serra was 12 years old, his mother became very ill. In order to give both his sons some distraction of the hard reality his family suddenly was facing, Eric’s father gave each of them a Zenit EM 24*36 reflex camera. And while his father spent most of his time at the hospital, one of his father’s friends dedicated his time in teaching Eric how to use the camera and how to deal with photographic paper and film. 15 months later Eric’s mother passed away and Eric, young teenager he was and trying to deal with emotions that no teenager should have to deal with at that age, buried himself in his new found passion and spent most of his time in his darkroom
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For 4 years Eric focused all his free time on his photography, until, at age 16, he discovered another way of expressing his emotions. Music. Eric Guichaoua-Serra changed his life and slowly started to forget about photography. For the next 25 years he solely focused on composing music until one day in 2005 he bought himself a digital camera. It was an impulse that he followed, thinking it was going to be just for fun. But it seemed his destiny was laid out for him once again, because on December 24 of that same year, Eric met Clénil-Cyprien. Though facing an age difference of more then 15 years, there was an immediate and undeniable attraction between Eric and Clénil. Maybe it was the creative talent they both had that bonded them at first. Maybe it was truly love at first sight. Fact is that Eric and Clénil found each other and were destined for each other. It was Clénil who encouraged Eric to spend more time with his camera and wanting him to do more, he offered Eric his first digital reflex camera for his first birthday in their relationship. Not just his lover and companion, Clénil also became Eric’s muse. Clénil was a wonderful model and many of Eric’s photographs are dedicated to him. Driven by Clénil, Eric started to exhibit his work and record his music. Life was beautiful and things went well.
Clénil-Cyprien died on June 21 2007. He was only 21 years old. His relation with Eric had been so intense that Eric once again found himself in that dark place of despair and loneliness. And once again his art became the reflection of his emotion. Moody. Gritty. Angry. Sad. His photography turned darker. Almost weird. Often he started to explore the unidentified territory of fetishism. Eric found himself in a dark place with no other escape than his talent. Until in July 2011, after 4 years of mourning, he came to the conclusion that he had to let go. That he had to change his life.
From the first day they met Clénin had been a catalyst for Eric Guichaoua-Serra. And if your relationship with someone is that strong, even death won't part it. In July 2011 Eric quite the job he held for 26 years and started his own business in computer technology, photography and music. With Clénin’s encouragement whispering like an echo in his ears, he boldly put together an exhibition of his work from the past years and had a first showing in Marseille in November of that same year. A second exhibition took place in Paris, in March and April 2012. One thing lead to another and Eric was asked to shoot the Baroque New York Fall/Winter Collection 2012. Lead by the spiritual hand of his lover and muse Clénil, Eric slowly found his way back into a lighter way of living. Today, 2016, sees a whole new Eric Guichaoua-Serra. His work, still very artistic, creative and in some cases provocative, has become less fetish. He has gone back to his first creative passion: street photography. He has been active for ANRS (Agence Nationale de Recherche contre le SIDA), ENIPSE (association for prevention of sexual diseases) and for REX Fetish Shop Paris, the one that offered him his fort exhibition in the French capital. Last summer Eric spent considerable time in China where he focused on Yoga and street photography and China has become a new passion for the talented French artist. He is now trying to find a way to settle down there, as photographer. Until then, we can find Eric still in the heart of Paris, a city that, though plagued by sadness, rises above all on the mighty wings of live and beauty. Just like Eric himself.
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