Brigitte Bardot celebrated her 80th birthday on 28 September, so an exhibition in her adopted town looks back over the fabulous career of an icon who inspired a whole generation and set the film world a-buzz.
Almost 60 years ago, Roger Vadim's now-famous And God Created Woman launched a legend: Brigitte Bardot, the 22-year-old Parisian who played an orphan girl desired by three men, proved herself a talented actress and fired the world's fantasies. What better way to pay tribute to this now very discreet icon than a retrospective in the place she loves best: Saint-Tropez, the fishing village that owes its own legendary status not a little to the blonde goddess who in 1958 moved into La Madrague, her beautiful home, her haven, and the setting for grandiose parties attended by such as Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo. Château de la Messardière's exhibition was made possible by Bruno Ricard, a long-standing fan of BB, who for the occasion has loaned "1%" of his private collection of no less than... 300,000 items!
Genuine friendship
Like his idol, Ricard adores animals, is a member of the Fondation Bardot and a patron of GLAMA (the charity for mistreated Spanish greyhounds), and admits to "spending at least 5 or 6 hours a day on research". From his passion for the Saint-Tropez star, whom he has met many times, even visiting her home and tasting the fruit from her "famed fig tree", a genuine friendship has grown up, including with her husband, Bernard d’Ormale, whom Ricard says he speaks to "virtually every day on the phone" and considers "a father figure". Few people are lucky enough to still frequent the ex-actress, who since giving up her career in 1973 only makes public appearances to promote the cause dearest to her heart: animal welfare. In La Messardière's exhibition rooms, original posters, records and items bearing the star's image faithfully recount the career of this lovely woman who recorded around 100 songs and made 50-odd films, among them Contempt and The Legend of Frenchie King. An intimate tribute, full of admiration, made possible by Alexandre Durand-Viel, Château de la Messardière's managing director, and Claude Maniscalo, the exhibition's main curator.
« Best of Brigitte », jusqu’au 26 octobre Saint-Tropez, 2 route de Tahiti – Tél. 04 94 56 76 00
Blogs de Bruno Ricard sur la star : http://brigitte-bardot.over-blog.net http://saint-tropez-bailli.blog4ever.com
By Alix Lerebours
Côteweb 2021, création de site Internet sur Nice