Meeting with Bill Bernstein aboard Farö

On the occasion of the exhibition The Beat Goes On! at Quai de la Photo, we met photographer Bill Bernstein during a cruise on the Seine. A key figure in the New York scene of the 1970s and 1980s, he is known for his iconic images of nightlife, particularly at Studio 54 and Paradise Garage. Through his lens, Bernstein captured the raw energy, freedom, and excitement of an era when music, dance, and imagery were one.

We took advantage of this moment shared with Bill Bernstein aboard the Farö to ask him about his relationship with sailing and those suspended moments that continue to inspire and energize his work today.

New York is shaped by water—the Hudson River, the East River, and the harbor. Do these waterways remind you of trips you’ve taken by boat or on rivers elsewhere in the world?

New York has always struck me as a city shaped by water. Long before I understood its history or began photographing its nightlife, water was already part of how I learned to see the world.

When I was a child, my father bought a boat. Some weekends, we’d cruise up and down the Hudson as a family. Those moments left a deep impression on me—the slow pace, the shifting light, the way the city softened as soon as we moved away from the shore. From the water, New York looked different: less harsh, more enigmatic, almost cinematic.

I believe those early trips taught me the essentials: to observe rather than rush, to be attentive to the atmosphere, the reflections, the nuances. The Hudson wasn’t just a backdrop; it was a setting in motion, in constant transformation, much like photography itself.

© Bill Bernstein

Later, when I traveled by boat or along rivers in other parts of the world—passing through ports, hopping from island to island, or following unfamiliar waterways—that feeling always returned. The feeling of being in transition. Between two destinations. Observing the world from a certain distance.

Yes, New York’s waterways resonate deeply within me. They connect the city not only in space, but also in time—to childhood, to family, and to those first moments when I realized that it is the journeys, more than the destinations, that shape our perspective.

Many of your photographs stem from a sense of closeness—being close to people, close to their movements. In New York, where distance and speed dominate, how do you manage to create that sense of closeness?

For me, closeness has never been just a matter of physical distance—it’s a matter of permission.

New York is fast-paced, noisy, and constantly on the move. People there shield themselves through speed. So I realized very early on that, if you want to achieve a sense of intimacy in such an environment, you can’t force it. You have to earn it.

When I was photographing in clubs like Studio 54 or Paradise Garage, I didn’t just drop by with a camera. I kept coming back, night after night. People started to recognize me. I was no longer a stranger looking for images; I was part of the scene. From that point on, the camera stopped being a barrier and almost disappeared.

That’s when the gestures reveal themselves: a glance, a hand resting on a shoulder, a moment of relaxation. These things only appear when people feel confident enough to forget they’re being watched.

I believe that closeness arises from presence. From listening more than speaking. From staying long enough for the staging to fade away. In a city obsessed with speed, I slowed down, and that’s when closeness emerged. These photographs aren’t about physical closeness. They’re about emotional closeness.

© Bill Bernstein
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© crédit photo : Marion Briffod

The exhibition “The Beat Goes on!” is on view at Quai de la Photo through April 24, 2026.