The Librairie Schwilden has been in business for over a century. Passed down from grandfather to grandson, it was first located in the Galerie Bortier. Two and a half years ago, Nicolas Lambert and Vincent Bouchendhomme took over the business. ‘I took over the business as a tribute to Tristan Schwilden,’ explains Nicolas Lambert. ‘He was a discreet character, extremely cultured, not very approachable, who wrote reference works on Magritte’s posters and on Egyptology. He provided an enormous amount of data to the FOMU (FotoMuseum Antwerp) and carried out a huge amount of archiving work. His shop had fallen into disuse and when he died, the City asked me to take it over.
Meeting and shared passion
Nicolas and Vincent met at the Académie de Saint-Gilles. Both passionate about old photographic processes, they set up the Baxton Gallery together, specialising in these techniques. After selling the gallery, they joined forces to launch L’atelier de l’affiche and Librairie Schwilden. The duo were joined by Sabine Malbon, a restorer of old posters, who combined photos and posters. ‘We’ve been buying old posters for three years, from the 1950s to more recent periods,’ she explains. Sabine had already launched a similar workshop in Arles a few years ago. What was supposed to be a simple pop-up store during the “Rencontres de la photographie d’Arles” ended up being enthusiastically received and has continued to flourish ever since.
