In this multilayered opus of poetic symbolism, photographer Bettina Rheims and writer Serge Bramly evoke a Paris of surrealist visions, confused identities, artistic phantoms, unseen manipulation, obsession, fetish, and seething desire. Equal parts erotica, fashion shoot, art monograph, metaphysical mystery, archaeology of the French capital, and neo-noir arthouse film, Rose, c’est Paris is the steamy tale of twin sisters, known only as B and Rose, and a third principal—the city itself.

An abduction leads to a detective story that unfolds in the streets, cafés, cabarets, museums, abandoned factories, and grand hotels of Paris. What happened to the missing sister? Was there a plot? Was she really kidnapped? Is she alive or dead? Is it in fact a case of mistaken identity? Rheims and Bramly create a series of extraordinary tableaux suggesting all these possibilities and many more while simultaneously featuring a host of celebrity figures including Naomi Campbell, Michelle Yeoh, Monica Bellucci, Charlotte Rampling, Valérie Lemercier, Inés Sastre, Anna Mouglalis, Audrey Marnay, Anthony Delon, Rona Hartner, Jean-Pierre Kalfon, Azzedine Alaïa, Louise Bourgoin, and Hélèna Noguerra.

Fetishistically boxed up in a retro attaché case are souvenirs of this curious tale (or are they clues?): a rose, a mask, an Eiffel Tower statuette, a booklet, a DVD, and of course the photo book itself. Invoke your inner detective: set the case before you, flip open the rusty latches, and devour the evidence.

Collector’s Edition of 1,500 copies (No. 201–1,700), each numbered and signed by Bettina Rheims and Serge Bramly.

Also available in two Art Editions of 100 copies each, with a signed and numbered C-print.