Club Silencio is where all forms of art melt intermittently. From movies, design, architecture, to fashion. It’s a space where all forms of art cross paths.
David Lynch, who created Silencio’s interior space, wanted the underground – a private members club, to be a place full of possibilities. He didn’t desire to push artists who come through the door, to any limits. He intended for them to enter and be creative, be inspired.
Down the inscrutable stairs, guests are invited to an excursion of artistic energy. Unlike Lynch’s films, there are no mysterious murders, no jigsaw puzzles that one must comprehend or try to solve. Club Silencio is a place of intoxicating experiences alluring guests and private members to come back time after time. “For me, it’s about creating new energy,” Coralie Gaultier, Press Spokeswoman for Club Silencio says, “we’re giving a small stage for a limited amount of artists to truly experiment and see how people react to new projects and artistic ideas.”
Located inside one of the most historical buildings in Paris on 142 Rue Montmartre, the edifice was headquarter to the French newspaper La France in 1874, then became the printing house of Paul Dupont. Several newspapers (Le Radical, L’aurore, L’universe…etc.) also situated headquarters in the building until 1914. Then, it was a place where the famed socialist Jean Jaurès had set up a French Communist Party newspaper L’Humanité in 1913. He was then murdered the year after, across the street from where the club currently resides.
“There’s a lot of ghostly energy in the space,” Coralie explains, “filled with ghosts of intellectual minds.”
In the club is where Justice, the French electronic duo, recorded their very first album. Almost three years ago, the project of the club glued together, where the owners: Arnaud Frisch, Manu Barron and Anthony Caton desired for a cinemagraphic experience for its guests. When it came to the question of who should design a club that would assemble such a vision, the famed director, David Lynch’s name surfaced more than several times. Lynch finally came to the underground cavern and agreed to create a space that combined various forms of art: cinema, design, architecture and fashion.
Spiraling from the entrance of the club, are abstruse stairs that lead to an enclave of wood panels. Before the actual entrance of Club Silencio, however, is a space where photography exhibitions and light installations are typically displayed. Upon entering the club, the famous and exquisitely designed bar is already in sight. Each drink is especially made for its private members and guests, who acknowledge that waiting for a unique cocktail is part of the Silencio experience. The cocktail menu changes every three months, according to each seasonal trends. The bar isn’t about serving guests signature drinks on the menu, but rather, serving signature drinks of the guests.
In the main area, a stage is present; where concerts and conferences are typically held. Main steel and pillars that uphold this area are made from the same material as those made from the Eiffel Tower, connecting Social Club merely a few floors above to the underground Silencio. If anyone were to listen carefully with ears glued to the pillars, music from upstairs can be heard through the steel, whispering to the intimate pianist who tickles his fingers on a grand piano on stage behind velvet curtains. Artists who spend any night at Silencio have options of personal cocktails designed to their own likings or to a highly curated selection of wines that are kept in a cryptic cave housing vintage and extraordinary rare wines.
Other picturesque spaces in the club include: a secluded smoking room encompassing artificial trees that palm ashtrays via white branches. The room is dimmed but romantically lit. While the room is separated from the rest of the club, it is merely a few feet away from its restrooms, elegantly yet whimsically embellished with mirrors that potentially showcase the best of its guests through enigmatic mirrors (one must fully comprehend the joke at the venue.) On the other side of the space, a private theater (24 seats) is enclosed with the latest releases every evening at 8:30pm. Selections of films may reflect upon the most recent trends or of artistic collections that may spark inspiration for artists who attend screenings.
As opposed to common beliefs, Club Silencio’s private membership isn’t one that arrives too expensively. Under age 30, it costs 30 euros/month to become a member. Regular rate for a member comprises 70-85 euros/month. While the price doesn’t dictate who comes through the door as a regular, it is who the guests are that is deemed exclusive. The club is targeted to congregate creative minds together, hence exhibitions are held to specifically further innovate art. One must be an artist of a kind: photographers, designers, writers, musicians are always welcome. The atmosphere is cozily intimate, oozing a peculiar air to think and to create.
Coralie, who was a Communications Director for Yohji Yamamoto, is currently loving her work for Club Silencio as Press Spokeswoman.
“I’m always curious about designers, fashion, a place that is open to everything. So when I was referred to work for this space, I was so excited!” She continues to speak about the project, “I work so hard, but late through the night, I realize that I’m not working at all. I fee like I’m floating at my job. From moment to moment: movies, dance…there are just so many options under the same roof.”
Most of private clubs around the world are dedicated to one form of art, whether it is: movies, design or architecture. But to create a space where all forms of art cross is where Silencio differentiates itself from others. “I think this is a very contemporary place,” Coralie notes,
“artists don’t forget about roots of art. In a very natural way, not forcing it. We’re in the home of many artists. When they come here, they know that it’s a time for creation and artistic moments to share together.”
At the end of the day, Paris is a place opened to art. It has been a sleeping beauty for many years. In recent time, it has been an exciting period for Paris. There may possibly have been a moment when Paris was dormant, but its return as a centrical artistic influence is filled with exhilaration. It has returned to where it always was, for travelers around the world to be inspired, once again.
Check out more on Club Silencio and sign up for your membership.
