About Me
Premade LayoutsOn the first three decades of the twentieth century, I triumphed as the brightest star in European society. Possibly the most artistically represented woman in history after the Virgin Mary and Cleopatra, the portraits, sculptures and photographs of me would fill a gallery. In a quest for immortality, I had myself painted by Giovanni Boldini, Augustus John, Kees Van Dongen, Romaine Brooks and Ignacio Zuloaga; sketched by Drian, Alberto Martini and Alastair; sculpted by Giacomo Balla, Catherine Barjansky and Jacob Epstein; and photographed by Man Ray, Cecil Beaton and Baron Adolph de Meyer. I frightened Artur Rubinstein, angered Aleister Crowley and intimidated T.E. Lawrence. As muse to the Italian futurists F. T. Marinetti, Fortunato Depero and Umberto Boccioni, I conjured up an elaborate marionette show with music by Maurice Ravel. Accompanied by my pet boa constrictor, I checked into the Ritz Hotel in Paris where it escaped. Considered the original female dandy, Léon Bakst, Paul Poiret, Mariano Fortuny and Erté dressed me. I adorned myself with the jewels of Lalique and directly inspired the famed 'Panther' design for Cartier.
My parties and appearances at others became legendary–at one celebration in my Venetian palazzo, Nijinsky invited Isadora Duncan to dance; Picasso attended a soirée at my Roman villa; while I costumed myself as a living artwork inspired by Dali for another. I was a subject of intrigue to Marcel Proust and the Comte Robert de Montesquiou. I whirled through Parisian nightlife, making an unforgettable impression on Colette, Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel.
Everywhere I went, I set trends, inspired genius and astounded even the most jaded members of the international aristocracy. Without question, I was the most scandalous woman of my day.
The lore of my riveting gaze even inspired famed American writers Ezra Pound, Tennessee Williams and Jack Kerouac.The shackles of a predictable marriage had already begun to frustrate me when I met Gabriele D’Annunzio. I began an open affair with the notorious Italian writer who dubbed me both his 'Coré' and the 'Divine Marquise'–the former, an allusion to the Grecian mythological figure of the 'Queen of Hell'; the latter, in homage to the Marquis de Sade. Not surprisingly, our romantic liaison fuelled the continental gossip columns. My inhibitions unfettered by D’Annunzio, I dramatically altered my appearance to become a bewitchingly beautiful figure from some bizarre fairy tale. I further enhanced my strange persona with the keeping of pet cheetahs, snakes and monkeys, and even gilt encrusted male servants. There would be those who would accuse me of conducting an utterly frivolous life as Europe’s most decadent hostess. But in truth, I had a passion of a much more serious nature–the commissioning of my own immortality.
