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Infinite Variety: The Life and Legend of the Marchesa Casati
For the first three decades of the twentieth century, the Marchesa Casati astounded Europe: nude servants gilded in gold leaf attended her; bizarre wax mannequins sat as guests at her dining table; and she was infamous for her evening strolls, naked beneath her furs, parading cheetahs on diamond-studded leashes. Artists painted, sculpted, and photographed her; poets praised her strange beauty. Among them were Gabriele D’Annunzio, Man Ray, Jean Cocteau, Cecil Beaton, and American writers Tennessee Williams, Jack Kerouac, and Ezra Pound. Couturiers Fortuny, Poiret, and Erté dressed her. Some became lovers, others awestruck admirers, but all were influenced by this extraordinary muse. The extravagance ended in 1930 when Casati was more than twenty-five million dollars in debt. Fleeing to London, she spent her final flamboyant years there until her death in 1957. Now nearly a half-century later, Casati’s fashion legacy continues to inspire such designers as John Galliano, Karl Lagerfeld, and Tom Ford. Fully authorized and accurate, this is the fantastic story of the Marchesa Luisa Casati.Scot D. Ryersson is an award-winning freelance writer, illustrator, and graphic designer. He lives in New Jersey.Michael Orlando Yaccarino is a freelance writer specializing in international genre film, fashion, music, and unconventional historical figures. He lives in New Jersey.
233 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
February 14, 2023
I've given this book two stars because I can't fault the writing and the illustrations are good and the Marchesa was inspiration for some good portraits by interesting painters but honestly, maybe you have to be younger, or stupider, or more easily impressed by someone spending vast amounts of money - most of it not hers by the end so she cheated an awful lot of ordinary people servants shopkeepers and the like out of their livelihoods (but then she never thought ordinary people existed or had a purpose outside of her whims - such as being made to wander round naked at her parties except for gold jock straps serving drinks - I don't find that sort of behavior funny or interesting - particularly not in the post WWI 1920s). I just grew tired of her - she was selfish and self obsessed and except for having lots of money and behaving in a 'shocking' way (of course she adored shocking society with her antics but she still expected the privileges and exemptions that being rich and titled brought her - so not really a rebel of any sort - maybe like a child screaming for attention but nothing else). She was also an appalling mother who then sponged off her daughter when she had blown all her own money.
It is probably a better book then this awful woman deserves.
It is probably a better book then this awful woman deserves.
November 19, 2007
Anyone who was a 'muse' to a lot of artists and would wear incredible outfits and on top of that - have a pet leopard on a leash is ok with me. Why isn't there rich people like that anymore?
June 11, 2018
I give the book four stars. I give the Marchesa Luisa Casati fifty. This woman was the original shocking bad ass goth girl. How had I never heard of this woman?! I once saw photos of her by Man Ray and was transfixed. She set out to make herself a living work of art.
Born to unimaginable wealth in 1881, she was a shy ugly duckling compared to her prettier older sister.
Married to the Marchese Camillo Casati in 1899, he brought the aristocratic title and she brought the wealth. It would have been a win-win except she didn’t give a damn about playing the expected role of quiet, lovely arm candy the way other aristocratic wives did. She was far too wild for such a humdrum life.
From walking her pet cheetahs down the Grand Canal in Venice, to kicking King Gustav V of Sweden out of one of her legendary masquerade balls for not being in costume (he returned an hour later, appropriately attired), to being electrocuted not once - but twice - in malfunctioning electrified costumes (one designed for her by Picasso to make her look like one of his drawings), everything she did was beyond belief.
A muse, an inspiration, a selfish terror like no other. She inspired legendary designers from Patou, Poiret and Fortuny in the 1910s to Galliano and Lagerfeld today. She’s immortalized in artworks by many prominent artists. She’s the namesake for the Marchesa clothing line. Cartier’s iconic panther jewels were inspired directly by the taxidermied animatronic panther she kept in her Palais Rose outside Paris.
Once one of the richest women in the world, she lived a life of total excess and died in squalor.
Such a fascinating woman.
Born to unimaginable wealth in 1881, she was a shy ugly duckling compared to her prettier older sister.
Married to the Marchese Camillo Casati in 1899, he brought the aristocratic title and she brought the wealth. It would have been a win-win except she didn’t give a damn about playing the expected role of quiet, lovely arm candy the way other aristocratic wives did. She was far too wild for such a humdrum life.
From walking her pet cheetahs down the Grand Canal in Venice, to kicking King Gustav V of Sweden out of one of her legendary masquerade balls for not being in costume (he returned an hour later, appropriately attired), to being electrocuted not once - but twice - in malfunctioning electrified costumes (one designed for her by Picasso to make her look like one of his drawings), everything she did was beyond belief.
A muse, an inspiration, a selfish terror like no other. She inspired legendary designers from Patou, Poiret and Fortuny in the 1910s to Galliano and Lagerfeld today. She’s immortalized in artworks by many prominent artists. She’s the namesake for the Marchesa clothing line. Cartier’s iconic panther jewels were inspired directly by the taxidermied animatronic panther she kept in her Palais Rose outside Paris.
Once one of the richest women in the world, she lived a life of total excess and died in squalor.
Such a fascinating woman.
September 25, 2012
Halfway through I realized I was reading a book about the fin di siècle Kim Kardashian. The writers tried their best to create a sympathetic portrait of Luisa Casati, but I'm afraid they failed. When I didn't actively dislike her, I found her silly.
January 6, 2025
Så många ord som säger så lite om en så otroligt fascinerande människa
August 15, 2012
The role that the dashing Marchesa Luisa Casati played as a muse of the avant-garde throughout the entirety of last century in the realms of fashion and art can't be underestimated. It was interesting to link so many familiar images back to her. An entire aesthetic in fashion and art.
She lived life in a vacuum, in a way completely unto herself and according to her own whims, while casting a brilliant inspiring glow. Perhaps to be truly unique is to be truly self-absorbed.
I kept imagining what a nightmare of a roommate she would make, but that's neither here nor there, and for the purposes of the story, the authors do very little to pry open the gates of her psyche. This is a biography entirely devoid of personality and personal musings. Instead, we see the Marchesa Casati through the quotes, sculptures, paintings and photographs of those she inspired, and in this way, we see her best.
She lived life in a vacuum, in a way completely unto herself and according to her own whims, while casting a brilliant inspiring glow. Perhaps to be truly unique is to be truly self-absorbed.
I kept imagining what a nightmare of a roommate she would make, but that's neither here nor there, and for the purposes of the story, the authors do very little to pry open the gates of her psyche. This is a biography entirely devoid of personality and personal musings. Instead, we see the Marchesa Casati through the quotes, sculptures, paintings and photographs of those she inspired, and in this way, we see her best.
March 30, 2020
I skimmed this one. It started okay and is filled with a lot of fabulous pictures. The subject was an extraordinarily unique individual who was an inspiration to many artists. She lived a fabulous life and spent money like water and ended up in poverty living on the kindness of old friends. The episodes off her astonishing parties, her incomparable costumes, her extravagances just got tiresome after a while.
August 9, 2012
I thoroughly enjoyed reading the life history of the Marchesa Luisa Casati. The one aspest of the book that really excited me is the mention of so many female artists, which one does not come across too often regarding the significant contributions woment have provided to their art communities during their life time. At the same time, it was difficulty to read that most of the art work by these artists did not survive their times as well as their male counterparts. The last paragraph in the book best describes and sums up the Marchesa's life "...she chose to become a living work of art..."
As I was reading the descriptions of her "living works of art," I could not help thinking that not only did her "dark" style influence the goth movement, but also the current and past female music divas of pop/rap such as Modonna, Lady GaGa, including Niki Minaj! I doubt if these women have knowledge of the Marchesa, however, they have been exposed to the fashion designers who may have knowledge of the "living art." Saying that, I'm sure each of these women would immensely enjoy meeting the Marchesa especially during the hight of her creatativity.
I strongly recommend this book to any art student(studying history, studio and/or fashion/interior design)for enlightenment of a movement and simply because the book is a grand resource.
As I was reading the descriptions of her "living works of art," I could not help thinking that not only did her "dark" style influence the goth movement, but also the current and past female music divas of pop/rap such as Modonna, Lady GaGa, including Niki Minaj! I doubt if these women have knowledge of the Marchesa, however, they have been exposed to the fashion designers who may have knowledge of the "living art." Saying that, I'm sure each of these women would immensely enjoy meeting the Marchesa especially during the hight of her creatativity.
I strongly recommend this book to any art student(studying history, studio and/or fashion/interior design)for enlightenment of a movement and simply because the book is a grand resource.
March 9, 2007
interesting bio on an eccentric doomed fashionista. without much documentation on her daily life, the authors craft a pretty decent snapshot of this Italian who described herself as a "living work of art"
July 4, 2009
Despite the squalor, she played, to the last notes, this ghostly echo of the D'Annunzian heroine. "Bring in the drinks!" she would call, and a bent Italian servant would shuffle forward with a half-empty bottle of beer.
-Michael Holroyd in Infinite Variety
-Michael Holroyd in Infinite Variety
August 16, 2013
Fascinating person as she was, this is a very repetitive tale. needed a strong editor to get in there! hard going but I finished it, happily.
September 1, 2014
A well-documented account of a decadent person living within decades where decadence was acceptable. Great detail of her dress and events; however I could never get a sense of her personhood.
July 20, 2008
Here's link to my review:
http://www.poeticandchic.com/home/200...
http://www.poeticandchic.com/home/200...
June 26, 2019
Povera Casati, un'intera biografia a lei dedicata e nemmeno la traccia, nemmeno l'ombra, di un suo pensiero, una riflessione, qualcosa. Solo vestiti, apparenza, arredamento, voglia di stupire e di risultare larger-than-life. Che sia stata questa la sua forza anticipatrice di un tempo vuoto?
September 14, 2020
Infinite Variety: The Life and Legend of the Marchesa Casati (1999)
In un libro del genere mettere pochissime immagini rispetto a quelle citate è insensato.
"Hai il viso che si addice a una donna per nascondere l'anima" pag. 102, da D'Annunzio, La figure de cire.
In un libro del genere mettere pochissime immagini rispetto a quelle citate è insensato.
"Hai il viso che si addice a una donna per nascondere l'anima" pag. 102, da D'Annunzio, La figure de cire.
October 24, 2022
She had an incredibly fascinating life, however the book itself read a bit more like a textbook - which for such an interesting subject was unfortunate. A film about her is begging to be made.
June 14, 2023
The failure on all counts to address and contextualise her overt racism, classism and cruelty toward both people, and the menagerie of animals she kept, has earned this biography a one star review.
February 12, 2017
Loved it, loved it, loved it! Not only an account of the Divine Marchesa's extrordinary life and eccentric personality – but a history of the fantastic art she inspired. A must-read for anyone interested in the turn of the century and/or people living their lives with no regards to the conventions of petty minds; following a path by their own choosing as if they were writing a poem rather than living the day-to-day of a life.
May 27, 2015
She was disparaged by respectable society for the same qualities that some of the greatest artists, sculptors, photographers & poets of the 20th Century made the Marchesa Casati their muse & the object of their adoration: she simply refused to live by the norms of 'respectable' society; she refused to live an ordinary life hemmed-in by mundane conventions.
Her life may have been self-absorbed, lived selfishly & lavishly to glorify (and enslaved to) her own image; she may have torn through fabulous fortunes to upkeep the only standard of living she knew (or accepted for herself to live); she may have ended her days bleakly in a one-room flat, a phantom of her old self, dressed in tattered black velvets and moth-eaten leopard skins, but to borrow a quote from the book, "Casati was the last of her kind." She was, undeniably, an original; no matter what the era, originals are a rare breed.
Her life may have been self-absorbed, lived selfishly & lavishly to glorify (and enslaved to) her own image; she may have torn through fabulous fortunes to upkeep the only standard of living she knew (or accepted for herself to live); she may have ended her days bleakly in a one-room flat, a phantom of her old self, dressed in tattered black velvets and moth-eaten leopard skins, but to borrow a quote from the book, "Casati was the last of her kind." She was, undeniably, an original; no matter what the era, originals are a rare breed.
October 11, 2008
I have always been fascinated (like most fashion people) with the Marchesa Casati. This book was one of the first to take a look at one of the most replicated faces in art and fashion. Although the Marchesa herself was a woman of wonder and strange practices, this book on her seems a bit dry. I had hoped that more would revealed about her love life, her secrets, her style. This seemed to only scratch the surface. Still good for those just taking a peek into her world, some fab quotes on her.
March 5, 2015
This is one of those books that shows truth is stranger than fiction. I Had never heard of Luisa Casati, but apparently she is very well known in artistic and fashion circles. Coming from an extremely,wealthy family, she spent extravagantly and by her 70s she was $25 milioni in debt and died in poverty. But she lead a fantastic life, defying conformity all the way. A very interesting, fascinating story.
April 22, 2011
One of the most interesting women in modern history. I loved reading about her life at home and how she was so particular about what she surrounded herself with. After a while, however, it became a bit tiring. I wanted a bit more insight as to the women herself, but I guess since no journals exist the author could o nly make assumptions. Still an entertaining read though.
August 14, 2012
Utterly fascination biography of the Marchesa, one of the true originals or the 20th or any century. Originally a timid aristocrat trapped in a dull marriage, she became a thrower of wild masked balls, subject of hundreds of artworks, keeper of exotic pets, resident of glorious mansions and the ultimate glamorous eccentric.
April 29, 2009
loved it! so will you if you are interested in fashioon, art history, european history or eccentric personalities. dreaming about going back to venice and paris and considering getting myself a pair of greyhounds. maybe greyhound statues...
August 22, 2018
This one was amazing. Her bio is excellent and very gothy. It's stuff you can't make up. I think there should be a movie based on her life. Christina Ricci could play her. Or someone taller, but gothy.
May 2, 2011
Well written biography of a flamboyant character. I wish the authors had gone more into the why but the how is engaging enough! Sometimes selfish and self-destructive, La Casati was one of the world's originals and unabashedly did it her way!
May 5, 2008
i just got the book today and very excited about it!!
Currently reading
September 25, 2008Oh god that I could be the Marchesa Casati! Dressed by Erte, consort of D'Annunzio, rumored witch, most oft-painted woman of the Belle Epoque- what more could one want?
October 6, 2011
Must read for all who are interested in the turn of the 20th century and true eccentricity!
April 21, 2012
Fascinating.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews