Suzy Solidor had a collection of thirty-three portraits of herself which she hung in her chic Paris nightclub called La Vie parisienne. These paintings were done by Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Raoul Dufy, Marie Laurencin, Francis Picabia and Kees van Dongen. This gave her the title of the “most painted woman in the world” and cleverly gave her venue great publicity.

Born in 1900 in Brittany, Suzy changed her name from Marion to Rocher, after her mother married and then to Solidor. It was in 1930 that she opened her club and she was also open about her sexuality as a lesbian. Her career as a singer and actress blossomed. One of her well known films was 'La Garçonne' (1936).

Here we have Suzy singing 'Lily Marlene'. It was probably the most performed song during the German occupation. Her venue became a popular place with the officers.

In 1960, Suzy Solidor left Paris for Cagnes-sur-Mer. She opened an antiques shop and every Summer until 1966, her cellar became a Cabaret. After 1966, Suzy stopped singing and concentrated solely on antiques. During her sixty years of success, there were four novels, a number of theatre and film roles and she was painted by nearly 200 artists. Some of the paintings were left to the city and can be seen at Chateau Musee Grimaldi Built which was built around 1300 by Rainier Grimald. Suzy died 30th March, 1983 and is buried in Cagnes-sur Mer.   

Below is part of the display of paintings. The painting on the left with a blue background is by Picabia.