Pierre Houlès

Pierre Houlès (October 27,1945 – August 4, 1986) was a French photographer.

Life and career

Pierre Houlès was born in Béziers, France on October 27, 1945.^[1] He moved to Paris in 1958. He took an interest in photography and in 1962 he enrolled in a course at Studio Guégan and then became his assistant.^[1]

In 1964, Houlès met Jean-Jacques Naudet during their military service in the film department of the army in the Fort d'Ivry.^[2] They became friends and moved to New York together in 1967 to pursue photography.^[2] Houlès sister Valerie was already living in New York and she helped find them a sublet at 54th Street and 6th Avenue in Manhattan. Soon they moved to a cheaper apartment downtown. By 1969, Houlès was working as an assistant to Bill Silano for Harper's Bazaar and Naudet was working for Glamour, and they moved to Carnegie Hill.^[2] They eventually went their separate ways, Naudet went into journalism and Houlès continued to pursue photography.^[2]

Houlès befriended fashion illustrator Antonio Lopez and artist Jean-Paul Goude, then an associate editor for Esquire, and he began working for Esquire in the 1970s. He also worked for Oui, Vogue Italia, Elle and Madame Figaro.^[2]

In the early 1980s, Houlès photographed artists Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring.^[3]

Houlès spent his time between New York and Paris. While in Paris, Houlès met South African model Josie Borain who was eighteen years his junior.^[4] Borain moved to New York with him in 1983 and they were married in 1984.^[1] Houlès encouraged her to become a photographer.^[5]

On August 4, 1986, Houlès died at the age of 40 while out for a jog in Paris.^[2] His body was found in the Bois de Boulogne where he was training for the New York City marathon.^[4]

In 2014, the first exhibition of his photographs since his death, Life's Too Short, was held at Myriam Bouagal Galerie in Paris.^[6]