Brigitte Bardot To Washingtonians: '(Sofitel) Lafayette, Nous Sommes Ici!'

NORTHWEST -- Trading the French Riviera for a White House-adjacent perch for the summer, legendary French icon Brigitte Bardot made a rare appearance in D.C. on Thursday evening. And while perhaps not an in-person pop-in, the photography homage presented in her honor at the Sofitel Washington DC Lafayette Square was no less mesmerizing in her absence (okay, maybe a little less).

The third of four U.S. stops in 2012 (the first two being Los Angeles and Chicago), the D.C. ‘BB Forever’ exhibition consists of more than two dozen photos culled from thousands of potential candidates by Artistic Director Henry-Jean Servat.

While a handful of the shots feature Bardot with some of her generation’s most famous celebrities, such as Sean Connery (aka James Bond) or Kirk Douglas (father of tiger blood-addicted Charlie Sheen), most are more intimate glances at her life.

Indeed, despite her fame, Bardot travelled little to the United States and disliked posing for photos, except for her friends. The photographs in ‘BB Forever’ are therefore mostly candid ones caught in rare moments of spontaneity.

To celebrate the arrival of the exhibition, which will run from now through September before moving on to New York, Sofitel D.C. General Manager Pierre-Louis Renou welcomed over a hundred guests to a festive cocktail reception at the hotel on Thursday evening.

For three hours, French lovers (double entendre implied) were treated to a stream of complimentary specialty cocktails (e.g., the ‘Bardot Pout’, ‘Honey Ginger Bardot’ or ‘BB Forever’) and warm French delicacies from the hotel’s Ici Urban Bistro.

Music came courtesy of Donald Syriani and those who chose to enjoy the warm weather on the restaurant’s outdoor patio were also provided the opportunity to preserve the festive nature of the night with a fun snapshot from onomonomedia.

It was truly magnifique!