Photo by Daniel Czap
 
Negative Year: July 1969 (printed year: 1969)
Print size: 19.8x29.8 cm
Style: Vintage print / gelatin silver print
Stamp on the verso
 
The Backstory:
Jane Birkin had a passionate and creative relationship with her mentor Serge Gainsbourg, whom she met on the set of Slogan in 1968.
 
1969 became an annus mirabilis for Birkin and Gainsbourg:
The two became a couple and released the album “Jane Birkin / Serge Gainsbourg”, which was full of lustful basses and sighing strings, sinister whispers and sweet peeping.
Gainsbourg lets Birkin sing a few songs that were originally intended for Brigitte Bardot, including a number that will soon be a must in every party room: “Je T’aime…Moi Non Plus”. The song was condemned by the Vatican and banned by the BBC, but nevertheless the song made on the charts within weeks.
 
The couple were also shooting their first movie "The Pleasure Pit" (Les Chemins de Katmandou) in 1969. During the shooting Gainsbourg and Birkin were riding a rickshaw on the Kathmandu Durbar Square and their smiles are the smiles of a young couple in love - ready for the next kiss.
 
Unfortunatly, their relationship lasted 13 years, but the couple is still regarded as one of the greatest romances of the 20th century and they always remained emotionally connected.