BREAK AWAY
THE SCENE IS AN ALMOST PERFECT PICTURE OF PARISIAN spring: the Eiffel Tower slouches in the afternoon sun, the Seine’s crisp waters hurtle along below, and atop a hill overlooking it all, bold rays of light beam between the Palais de Tokyo’s grand columns and along its sweeping marble floors.
But within these clichéd, postcard surroundings of western Paris – usually prime for pouting influencers, tourist hordes and the French capital’s haute bourgeoisie – are not-so-subtle signs of resistance. Look closely, and you can witness a subversive reclaiming of public space.
Stacks of boomboxes are pumping out beats that shake the Art Deco façades and rattle the eardrums of bystanders nearby. Swarms of skaters add to the racket with the clattering symphony of a thousand kickflips. And in one far corner, a dozen young men are gathered conspiratorially in a circle.
“This is our world,” says Gosso Nabisso, stretching his arms out wide like a predatory bird. “We won’t scream it in the street. But we this place. To be a b-boy is a culture and a
