Man Ray
Interior of Le Bœuf sur le Toit, Paris, Early 1920s
Stamped with the photographer's credits 'MAN RAY 31 bis, Rue Campagne Première Paris,' annotated 'At the Boeuf sur le toit, Paris, c. 1922 (with house pianist, Clement Doucet, seated at lower right, and the club's proprietor, Louis Moyses, seated at lower left)...' and '1' (on the verso)
Vintage silver print
16.5 by 21.6 cm (6½ by 8½ in.)
69092
© Man Ray 2015 Trust / Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY / ADAGP, Paris 2023
Le Bœuf sur le toit was a popular cabaret-nightclub founded in 1921 by Louis Moysés. Between the war years, it was a gathering place for artists, writers, musicians, and composers,...
Le Bœuf sur le toit was a popular cabaret-nightclub founded in 1921 by Louis Moysés. Between the war years, it was a gathering place for artists, writers, musicians, and composers, where at any night you could find Jean Cocteau, Pablo Picasso, or Erik Satie sitting in the audience. The name of the nightclub is a direct translation of the popular Brazilian song, O Boi no Telhado, meaning “The Ox on the Roof” which was overheard by the composer Darius Milaud in 1919. On a very successful opening night, Le Bœuf sur le toit featured Gershwin tunes by Jean Wiéner and Cocteau and Milhaud on the drums. The bar was mainly centered around music featuring the virtuoso pianist Clément Doucet and other classical musicians from the group, Les Six.