\n \n Some people travel the world in search of adventure, while others seek out natural wonders, cultural landmarks or culinary experiences. But French photographer Fran\u00e7ois Prost <\/a>was looking for something altogether different during his recent road trip across America<\/a>: strip clubs.\n <\/p>\n \n From Miami to Los Angeles, Prost\u2019s latest book \u201cGentlemen\u2019s Club<\/a>\u201d charts his route across the US via nearly 150 strip clubs with names like Pleasures, Temptations and Cookies N\u2019 Cream. There isn\u2019t a single nude woman to be seen, however, as Prost\u2019s camera was exclusively trained on the buildings themselves \u2014 and specifically their often-colorful facades.\n <\/p>\n \n Over the course of five weeks in 2019 he traversed over 6,000 miles, with the resulting photos<\/a> capturing everything from the pastel hues of Florida\u2019s Club Pink Pussycat to venues hiding in plain sight in the country\u2019s more religious states.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cI\u2019d divide these venues into two types: One is very integrated into the public landscape, and one is a bit more hidden and dodgy,\u201d Prost said, speaking to CNN on a video call and email.\n <\/p>\n \n The first type, he added, could be found in \u201cvery American\u201d settings, such as \u201caround amusement parks and fast food and malls.\u201d The latter venues, however, would sometimes look indistinguishable from any store in a strip mall. Prost said he found many such establishments along the Bible Belt, a socially conservative region in the country\u2019s south. He was especially keen to explore the area due to the apparent contrast between the prevalence of strip clubs and what he describes in his book as \u201cconservatism and extreme puritanism.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Prost insisted that he had little interest in the interiors or services of the strip clubs, which he always visited during the day. Instead, he hoped to learn more about American culture by creating objective, documentary-style photographs of establishments sitting at the intersection of sex, gender and commerce. Documenting changing attitudes toward sex through the lens of architecture, he added that the series was primarily of a landscape photography project.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cThe prism of this theme of strip club facades became a way of studying and trying to understand the country,\u201d he wrote in \u201cGentlemen\u2019s Club,\u201d photographs from which will feature in an exhibition in Tokyo in March.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201d(\u2018Gentlemen\u2019s Club\u2019 is) an objective panorama of dominant opinions and gender and the sexualization of the feminine image.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The genesis of Prost\u2019s project dates back to his 2018 series, \u201cAfter Party<\/a>,\u201d which focused on the flamboyant facades of French nightclubs. He said that people frequently commented that the buildings\u2019 exteriors looked as though they had been ripped straight out of American cities, sparking the idea that he should visit the US and extend the project.\n <\/p>\n \n As he meticulously planned his trip, he was struck not only by the sheer volume of strip clubs in America but that \u2014 unlike In Europe \u2014 they often demanded to be seen. Hot pink walls, gigantic nude silhouettes and even candy-cane-striped storefronts made no secret of the kind of entertainment provided inside.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cA good example would be Las Vegas, where strip clubs are everywhere and their signs blink as much as a fast food (restaurant) or casino sign,\u201d Prost said.\n <\/p>\n \n Miami\u2019s clubs were often painted in vivid, Wes Anderson-esque<\/a> hues. Other photos show brightly covered venues contrasting with their sparse desert surroundings.\n <\/p>\n \n If the establishments were open during the day, Prost would enter and ask for permission to take photos in order \u201cto not look suspicious\u2026 and explain what my intentions were,\u201d he said. The interiors rarely lived up to the tantalizing promises plastered across the signs outside, but the photographer met a host of characters during his five-week trip, from indifferent bouncers to managers who were thrilled about the project.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cMost of the time, people were OK \u2014 99% of them would say yes to a facade picture,\u201d he said, adding they typically wouldn\u2019t mind his presence, as long as he didn\u2019t take photos of patrons or dancers.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cSome would think that it was a bit strange, some would be really excited about it and give me their business card to send me the picture when it was done,\u201d he said.\n <\/p>\n \n Prost said his biggest surprise, however, was how \u201cnormalized\u201d strip clubs appeared to be in everyday life. <\/strong>As he reflects in his book, \u201cThe relationship that Americans seem to have with strip clubs is quite different to what you see in Europe. Going to a strip club seems to be a lot more normalized \u2026 You go as a couple, or amongst friends at night to have fun.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n He was struck, for instance, by the fact that so many Las Vegas strip clubs doubled as restaurants \u2014 with many boasting happy hour deals, buffets and special discounts for truck drivers or construction workers.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cI noticed a few strip clubs that would advertise being a strip club and steakhouse, so you could eat a big piece of meat (while) watching strippers. That is also something that seems very American to me,\u201d he said, adding: \u201cI heard from some people I met in Portland there are even strip clubs (that offer) vegan food.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The facades are littered with jokes like \u201cMy sex life is like the Sahara, 2 palms, no dates\u201d and pun-based names like Booby Trap and Bottoms Up. Prost\u2019s documentarian approach heightens the signs\u2019 surreal comedy. But it also doubles as a neutral lens through which viewers can make up their own minds about the objectification of women.\n <\/p>\n \n By honing in on the faceless dancing bodies of female silhouettes and the quintessential \u201cgirls girls girls\u201d signs, \u201cGentleman\u2019s Club\u201d explores the commodification of women who are, in reality, completely absent in Prost\u2019s works (an observation reflected in the book\u2019s title, which is a phrase that crops up numerous times on signs throughout his photographs). The strip clubs he visited market women as things to be consumed, from the many food-themed names to an advertisement reading, \u201c1,000\u2019s of beautiful girls & three ugly ones.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n For his next project, Prost plans to visit Japan to document the nation\u2019s love hotels, which occupy a similar role as strip clubs in some parts of the US: open secrets in a conservative society. But the photographer believes the American establishments he visited say something unique about the country \u2014 something that is less about sexuality and more about the American dream.\n <\/p>\n \n What his project has shown him is, he said, this: \u201cAs long as you\u2019re successful in terms of business, (it doesn\u2019t matter) if your activity deals with sex.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cGentlemen\u2019s Club\u201d will be exhibited at Agnes b. Galerie Boutique in Tokyo, Japan, between March 17 and April 15, 2023. The <\/em>book<\/em><\/a>, published by Fisheye Editions, is available now.<\/em>\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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