RECONSTITUTION D’UN ACCIDENT QUI NE M’EST PAS ENCORE ARRIVE ET OU J’AI TROUVE LA MORT. 1969. first edtion.

Paris: Edition Givaudon, 1969
17.5 x 28cm, 6pp offset (although designed to look like a photocopy with blurred, polarised photographs) artist’s book with original white slide binder.
This is the true first edition – a book/collection of sheets describes a fictitious accident which supposedly took place at the Boulevard Carnot and Avenue Jean Jaures (however the modern Paris seems not to have the Avenue anymore but one can find the location by following the Boulevard Carnot on Google street view and comparing Boltanski’s photographs).
As with much of early Boltanski’s work he is an unreliable narrator – the images and stories in his books and descriptions are not necessarily true and it is difficult to tease out reality from re-creation but then that is the point – history is not accurate, it is always mediated through human memory, frailties and biases.
Very rare in VG+ condition.