Beauty & Bulgakov

wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Mikhail Bulgakov's novel "The Master and Margarita" has become a cult book.
Written in the 1930s, it tells the story of Satan's visit to atheistic Moscow and is full of satire on the Soviet Union's social order. Naturally, it couldn't be published.
An uncensored version appeared in Russia only in the '70s and was an enormous success.
Since then the book has become a constant source of inspiration for all manner of creative exploits. Last year, Russian businessman Yevgeny Yakovlev came up with the idea of an unusual project - a visual interpretation of the novel. He invited a French fashion photographer Jean-Daniel Lorieux to carry out the idea.
"This project helped me to get acquainted with Bulgakov's Moscow," said Lorieux at the press opening of the exhibition, suggesting that shooting took place at the very locations mentioned in the novel.
"I got an amazing opportunity to combine moviemaking and photography," he added.
The cast agreed.
"It was like we were making a movie, not just a series of pictures," said Russian actor Vladimir Koshevoi, who played the Master in the photo shoot. "We would rehearse before every scene, each of us had lines. We were not models, but actors."
A behind-the-scenes movie about the creation of the photo series was also made, and can be seen at the exhibition.
One of Russia's top models, Danila Polyakov, portrayed fanged Azazello, a member of Satan's retinue. But not everyone in the cast was Russian; in fact, the heroine of the novel - the Master's beloved Margarita - was portrayed by the renowned French actress Isabelle Adjani.
"There is the word ‘belle' in her name," said Lorieux. "And she has done an outstanding job."
Joint efforts of the international crew developed into thousands of shots, only 50 of which were selected for the show. "Previously we launched our exhibition in Paris, and I am pretty sure we're going to repeat our success in Moscow and in other cities as well. I hope that with the help of our project lots of people all over the world will get acquainted with Bulgakov's heritage," Lorieux said.