These lesbians have marked the history of France and you may have never heard of them

If I ask you to quote some names of famous lesbians in France, it’s a safe bet that you could mention Hoshi, Amélie Mauresmo or Adèle Haenel. But can you name the great lesbian figures who have marked history in France?

Probably not, because too often they have been invisible. Today again, it is normal that we hide, forget, delete this aspect of their life. There are many excuses, “But after all, we have no proof! » TO “it was probably her roommate”passing through the chaste and the indignant “It’s about his private life, there’s no need to talk about it”.

To make amends, here are some names to know!

Loie Fuller (1862-1928)

A pioneering dancer of the early 20th century, the American Loïe Fuller made her mark on her art, notably thanks to one of her creations, the famous serpentine dance. In France you have been living a relationship with Gabrielle Bloch for some time, with whom you collaborate for her shows.

Yet when this visionary artist who inspired the painters of Paris during the Belle Époque was finally featured in a biopic in 2016, The dancer, the film takes some liberties to evoke his life, going so far as to lend him an unhealthy heterosexual passion for a completely fictional male character. Like the one that, even when we don’t hide, society puts us in the closet just as dry.

Elula Perrin (1929-2003)

Figure of the Parisian Sapphic nights, Elula Perrin founded in 1969 the Kathmandu, a nightclub where lesbians can come to flirt, dance, make love, then Le Privilège in the early 90s, located in the basement of the Palace.

In 1977, he spoke openly about his homosexuality on the Philippe Bouvard show, burning oil. She is also the author of several novels with unequivocal titles: women prefer women, As long as there are women OR He yells for the love of women.

We also find it in this show of It’s my choice (the real ones remember it) at 9’22:

Mireille Havet (1898-1932)

Early 20th century prodigy poet and writer, Mireille Havet was a sulphurous figure in lesbian Paris and lived a life of excess without concessions.

Only one novel remains of his work, Carnivalbut also her diary, monumental and abundant, found in 1995 by the descendant of her friend Ludmilla Savuitsky then published in several volumes in the 2000s by Claire Paulhan, where she tells it ” life of damnation “.

Suzy Solidor (1900-1983)

The incarnation of the kid of the roaring twenties, this is her. Model, singer, patroness of cabaret, model for Francis Picabia, Tamara de Lempicka or even Man Ray thanks to her sculptural physique, the very socialite Suzy Solidor crossed the 20th century by embarking on her relationships with women (and some men among the ‘other).

She notably lives with the antiquarian Yvonne de Bremond d’Ars, and was immortalized with her by the artist Léonard Tsuguharu Foujita:

Rosa Happiness (1822-1899)

We have recently celebrated the bicentenary of the birth of this great naturalist painter, known for her paintings of animals, including the famous Horse market.

The opportunity to see that the invisibility of lesbians is still relevant as it is still difficult for the French media to consider a woman who has lived her whole life with another woman and is even buried next to her as a lesbian. . Probably good friends, we’re told.

Rosa Bonheur had a transvestism permit, an indispensable document issued by the Police Headquarters in order to dress as a man. Her partner Nathalie Micas also had one.

Andree Jacob (1906-2002) and Eveline Garnier (1904-1989)

This couple actively participated in the French Resistance during the occupation, in particular by integrating into the Noyautage des administrations publiques (NAP), and saved Jewish families from deportation. Yet their name is rarely cited as an example.

Their names appear on two alleys of Square Louvois in Paris, which opened in 2019.

Liane de Pougy (1869-1959)

From Nathalie Clifford Barney to Emilienne d’Alençon, the conquests of demi-mondaine Liane de Pougy are numerous. It’s very simple, her wikipedia file of her looks like a season of The word l before the hour.

Cabaret dancer and courtesan, like the cocottes of the time La Belle Otero or Cléo de Mérode, she also wrote several books, including Sapphic idyll.

Maria José Léao Dos Santos (1955-2019)

You don’t know her, but you know it Joe the cab, song that propelled the career of Vanessa Paradis in the 80s… and inspired by Maria-José Léao Dos Santos. Arriving in the 1970s to escape the dictatorship in Portugal, she became a taxi driver, dragging a large number of stars and anonymous through the streets of Paris, until her story inspired a famous lyricist …

After his death in 2019, his partner Johanne Gabriel wanted to tell his story.

Photo Credit: Liane de Pougy (Author Unknown, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons)