Gaspard- Felix Tournachon, better known as Nadar was a revolutionary bohemian. Author Adam Begley has written the first english novel depicting the inspiring tales of Nadar and how his sense of restless adventure made him one of the most well known creatives of the 19th century
In his youth Nagar was known for elaborate parties that had the common 19th century party actives, like clay pigeon shooting and fireworks, but at the stroke of midnight the party would turn into a never to forget spectacle filled with “odious dances”, “savage cries’ and “racy tableaux vivants”. Attending these parties were like minded companions such as Henry Burger, an author who popularized the theory of bohemia, an inspiration for Puccini's opera “La Boheme” . Begley brings awareness to the fact that Nadar “had a hand in shaping the whole notion of Bohemianism”.
This lifestyle was only the stepping stone for the creative that Nadar would evolve into. He was the first great portrait photographer, customers would fill his studio to have their portraits taken by him. In comparison Nadar is a 19th century Andy Warhol. He knew every Parisian celebrity worth knowing and photographed them. Like the famous actress Sarah Bernhardt , painter Eugène Delacroix and caricaturist Honoré Daumier. He was also the first person to take an aerial photograph by combining his two passions of photography and experimenting as a pioneer balloonist.
The Great Nadar by Adam Begley tells the story of Nadar’s adventurous life from beginning, when he was a boisterous young boy finding trouble through his curiosities, from middle; the hight of his career and experiments to the end; as a devoted husband and bohemian influencer who was ahead of his time.