The Eyes: Scherzo di Follia

Pierre-Louis Pierson 1822-1913

'The Eyes, 1863-66'

Scherzo di Follia

The Countess of Castiglione was a socially ambitious italian aristocrat. Her 40-year collaboration with Pierre-Louis Pierson resulted in over 400 photographs taken between 1865 and 1895. The Countess was an active participant in the construction of these images, drawing inspiration from contemporary fashion magazines and theatre performances for her diverse poses, costumes, and fantasy identities. The photographs anticipate a modern understanding of the celebrity persona whose identity is constructed through photography.

The important of the eyes, where we see things though out our lives, we adopt specific performance for different roles, occasions and spaces. The combination of roles and performances compose our sense of self for individuality. We somehow take the notion of self as a given as natural and normal thing but in fact individuality is a product of our historical moment and our dominant cultural moves.