Olivier Renault's Montparnasse guide uncovers legendary art haunts

Olivier Renault, a Parisian bookseller and regular contributor to art press, has published "Montparnasse. Les lieux de légendes" with Parigramme. The guide covers 60 addresses within the Montparnasse district, targeting residents rather than tourists. Renault reveals hidden, private, and often inaccessible locations, as well as iconic spots like Le Dôme, La Closerie des Lilas, and La Rotonde. The book combines images and anecdotes about places where artists lived from the 19th century onward, when Montparnasse was on the outskirts of Paris, offering cheaper wine and a faubourg atmosphere. The area's development accelerated with the inauguration of the boulevard Raspail segment between Saint-Germain and the Vavin crossroads in 1911. Renault's work chronicles a thirty-year period of Parisian art history centered on Montparnasse.