Author(s): Gilles Tondini

Social Sciences

Cataphiles, the illicit intruders that infiltrate the quarries underneath Paris, paint graffiti that very few people ever have the chance to view. In Painted Paris: Secret Underground Graffiti photographer Gilles Tondini, long fascinated with cataphiles and their exploits, has braved waist-deep standing water and crawled through the nooks and crannies of these tunnels to document the work that artists have been adding to these limestone walls since the student protests of the late 1960s. 

Tondini's exceptional photographs track the political, social and cultural climates that inspired the artists, whose work ranges from traditional tags to riffs on more classical art forms. Along with interviews of cataphiles active today, Painted Paris showcases the City of Lights like you've never seen it before.