Lou Doillon. “Because of my mother’s illness, I stagnated in the anteroom of death”

Singer, author, composer and designer Lou Doillon is passionate about poetry and particularly the works of American writer Emily Dickinson. He wrote the foreword to the collection titled Poems of Emily Dickinson (published by Éditions Diane de Selliers), which juxtaposes the poet’s verses and paintings in powerful colors, signed by major artists of American modernism.

How did I meet Emily Dickinson? ?
The first time I was 16, it was in my British maternal grandmother’s library. She was convinced that woman could be freed through independence of spirit and that poetry held the keys to freedom. When I was 25, Emily Dickinson came back into my life when my father gave me a translation of her poems. It took me a long time to realize how much his poems helped me to be in the world.

What attracts me to him? ?
It describes the invisible, which is before our eyes. He created a body of almost 1,800 poems written on slips of paper or on the back of a box of chocolates. Reading Emily Dickinson is like discovering an Eden we may or may not have access to anymore. Visual cues are palpable in every part of it. His poetry abounds in fascinations with color. The book, developed together with poet specialist Françoise Delphy and Center Pompidou curator Anna Hiddleston, brings together 162 of his poems, which resonate with paintings by American modernist artists such as Georgia O’Keeffe and Arthur Dove.

How does this work resonate in my life? ?
My work as a musician invites me to write every day. But sometimes it gives the impression of weighing down the paper, of losing the sense of levitation dear to me, especially at this moment… I find it again thanks to the poetry of Emily Dickinson. Reading his poems, especially with these pictures in the mirror, allows me to find harmony in the words and at the same time let go of them.

My personality ?
On my Instagram account, to describe myself, I mentioned “line”, which means “dash”. My birth is a mixture of unions and collisions. I come from an amalgamation of languages, places, social backgrounds. I love boundaries so I can cross them.

My birth is a mixture of unions and collisions

Lou Doillon

Is it bad luck talking about myself in a promo? ?
It is a pleasure to support a collective project such as this book. It is more difficult for me to talk about my albums, it seems to me that I have already said everything through my songs.

Misunderstanding about me ?
When I released my first album, the places In 2012, I remember the surprise of people, who until then saw me as a socialite who spends her life in luxurious evenings… But this opinion was allowed, because I protected myself behind an image, hiding my artistic side.

Last time I was proud of myself ?
NOW: I’m in Rome to shoot the movie Almost at home (Almost Home) by Carolina Pavone, Italian director, produced by Nanni Moretti. Life is strange. I had not acted in a feature film for ten years. These past few years have been complicated by my mother’s illness. I stagnated in the antechamber of death (Jane Birkin died July 16, editor’s note) At the same time, I experienced the wonderful development of my son, Marlow, who celebrated his 21st birthday this summer, and I celebrated the 1st birthday of my second son, Laszlo. On the one hand, the grim reaper, on the other, absolute life…

Reading Emily Dickinson is like discovering an Eden we may or may not have access to anymore.

Lou Doillon

What am I going to do after this interview? ?
Right now I am on the terrace. I mourn. I uproot myself for a short time. I am learning Italian. I put myself to the test in front of the camera. It’s a strange moment of levitation. A way to free myself up to make my next album.

Poems of Emily Dickinson illustrated by American modernist paintingÉditions Diane de Selliers, 412 p., €230.