N°7
Décembre 2023
This new issue comes with a special on secrecy. At a time when women are encouraged to speak out, silence isn’t getting great press, and rightly so. Yet secrets can also spaces for freedom, rooms of our own... This issue explores secrets as new personal spaces from which beauty can spring forth.
SOPHIE CALLE, KEEPER OF SECRETS
If you still have things to hide, then you haven’t yet come across Sophie Calle. The French contemporary artist has been collecting secrets since the 1970s. —Photos: Louise Desnos.
WHITE MAGIC
Secret incantations and rituals for “talking out the fire” and “lifting the pain” have been circulating in some families in France since time immemorial. Today, in France such practices are known as “magnétisme” – a reference to the attraction of the energy in the body during the laying on of hands. But how is this mysterious power passed on? And can it be resistant to capitalism? —Words: Cha Toublanc. Photos: Hanna Pallot.
SEALED LOVE
Lesbian love long had to be kept secret. Some writers left behind correspondence; by turns passionate and tortured, which now remains as the only archive
of love affairs played out in the shadows. —Words: Renée Vivien, Annemarie Schwarzenbach, Natalie Barney.
BITTERSWEET SILENCE
In Norah’s family, as for so many others whose history is marked by slavery, it is skillfully kept quiet. The topic isn’t talked about, the question is avoided and a legacy of deafening silence is handed down to the next generation —Words: Norah Firoaguer-Pelc. Photos: Michelle Piergoelam.
GENEVIEVE HAS LEFT THE CHAT
I’ve become a ghostwriter for dating apps. It feels like being a cross between Cyrano de Bergerac and The Heartbreaker, and it speaks volumes about the state of love today. —Words: Laurie Dutheil. Photos: Elizabeth Renstrom.
what’s her secret?
In a system that would have women place their appearance at the centre of their very existence, the concept of the beauty secret is so widespread
that it’s no longer even questioned. And it reveals the heavy weight of what we think we should be hiding, even to the point of lying to ourselves. —Words: Mélissa Chidiac.
Testimonies
“tell us a secret that you cherish”
We asked our readers this question, and share their (anonymous) answers in a special.
Conversation
OLD IS GOLD
Aging is often portrayed as the worst disaster imaginable, especially as a woman in a world that prefers us to be young, smooth-skinned and energetic. But what if old age could actually be a chance to savour the peace we’ve finally been given. —Words: Isabelle Motrot. Photo: Diana Lui.
Archive
IRIS BREY
There are moments that we record carefully, so we can look back at how far we have come. After forging the concept of the female gaze on screen, Iris Brey has put her own theories into practice by directing her first series, Split.
Love letter
LUZ VOLCKMANN
In each issue we publish a woman's love letter to herself. With the whole world working against our self-esteem, it’s time to make our own declaration of self-love: a revolutionary act that’s just as difficult as it can be life-changing. —Illustration: Lucie Birant.
Art Herstory
La malinche
What if we rewrote part of art history, by giving voice to the women in our paintings? In this issue, we tell the story of a woman who would not be silenced. —Words: Sarah Velazquez Orcel. Photo: La Testa.
Portfolio
BELLISSIMA
In photographing Rebecca, a young Italian beauty pageant contestant and aspiring model, photographer Carla Rossi encourages viewers to question the female race for perfection.
Photo Contest
Mystery
The winner of our seventh photo contest, on the theme of “Mystery”, is French-Japanese photographer Elsa Okazaki !
Portfolio
ALGeria, who are you?
A troubling family history and a drawer-full of memories caught on film. In this photo series, Algerian photographer Lola Khalfa retraces her father’s footsteps and in doing so, unveils part of her country’s history.
Reportage Gonzo
A nos corps défendants
From Paris to Lima, without women, there can be no social movements. For the past year, Peruvian women have been driving, supporting and galvanising the protests that have shaken their country. —Words: Maïlys Khider. Photos: Connie France.
Flash forward
AVATAR
In each issue of Gaze, a different author takes a deep dive into the future, with an original piece of speculative fiction. This time, Lucie Ronfaut-Hazard brings us a story of love in a time to come. —Illustrations: Victoire Gazzola.
Panthéon personnel
sophie marie larrouy
Who would feature in your own pantheon of inspiring women? French actress, podcaster and author Sophie Marie Larrouy shares hers.
