second act projects les bains A famed Paris nightclub is reborn By ALIA AKKAM Photography by GUILLAUME GRASSET 1 In 1885 Les Bains Guerbois, a thermal bath retreat beloved by both French novelist Marcel Proust and weary workers from nearby Les Halles food market, opened in Paris. Then, nearly a century later in 1978, an on-the-rise Philippe Starck transformed the Haussmannian building into Les Bains Douches, the legendary (and debaucherous) nightclub where A-list celebs including Mick Jagger, David Bowie, and Yves Saint Laurent took in live performances by the likes of Depeche Mode, cavorting among the vintage bathhouse tiles. Today, the 3rd arrondissement institution finds new life as the swank Les Bains hotel. 314 May 2016 hospitalitydesign.com 2http://www.hospitalitydesign.com