The first photo model is often called one or the other name of a famous beauty of her time. But in fairness, one should still name the name of Virginia di Castiglione, because her photographs appeared exactly at the very beginning of the emergence of photography. It was she who came up with many posing techniques that are now actively used by Fashion photographers and Instagram stars... So let's remember the Countess ...

The first photograph showing a person was taken in 1838-1839. Then, in the middle of the 19th century, photography was treated as something supernatural, and at the same time, as a funny trinket, not counting it as art.



In the 1840s and 1850s, the first French, German and English photo studios were already opened. To get their photo, people seriously prepared for it. There were a lot of people who wanted to be photographed, and the cost of purchasing their photo was significant. Among such passionate admirers of photography was the Countess Virginia di Castiglione, who by that time had grown up and turned into a beautiful girl. True, as you know, beauty is perceived by everyone in different ways, and for most of us the woman in the photo, who drove the kings and their subjects crazy, does not seem at all to be a fairy princess.

How it all began: biography of a model

Virginia Aldoini was born in Florence in 1837 to an aristocratic family. At 17, she married Count Francesco di Castiglione. Soon the couple moved to Paris, where Virginia quickly gained fame as the favorite of the monarch of France. Napoleon III... The beauty of the Italian woman attracted the attention not only of the emperor, but also of his court photographer Pierre-Louis Pierson. It was he who took the huge number of photographs that Virginia left behind.



The Countess was passionate about photography and strove for artistic images, showing compositional ingenuity. When Count Francesco di Castiglione felt himself not only deceived by her husband, but also to some extent ruined, he immediately divorced Virginia. Having spent part of her husband's huge fortune on photography, she acquired about 400 photographs.

Going to Paris, Virginia di Castiglione, according to historians, had a specific task that contributed to the unification of Italy, at that time scattered and consisted of many kingdoms and principalities. She needed, having influence on the monarch of France, to convince him not to interfere with the unification of Italy.



But to affirm such a serious merit to one woman means to forget those who took part in the national liberation movement and the elimination of the territorial fragmentation of the country, who ensured the victory ...

At the head of the army of volunteers, Giuseppe Garibaldi, who later became the national hero of Italy, began the struggle for the unification of his native country. In 1831, during his stay in France, Giuseppe Mazzini (philosopher, publicist, revolutionary) founded the political organization Young Italy. While in exile, he promoted the principles of freedom. It was the work and struggle of many people united by one high goal.

And the Prime Minister of Piedmont, Count Camillo Benso Cavour, tried to persuade the French emperor Napoleon III to support the Kingdom of Sardinia in the war against Austria, however, in exchange for a promise to cede Nice and part of the Savoy region to France. Therefore, let us leave to historians to decide the importance of all those who fought and contributed to the unification of the country. Each leaves behind a memory - some in the hearts of people close to them, and others in the hearts of many nations (almost every city in Italy has a monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi).



Our heroine, Countess Virginia di Castiglione, left behind about 400 photographs, through which art historians can study the customs and culture of the past era. Photos allow you to get a feel for the history of those times. The photographs bear witness to the years gone by.

The benevolence of Napoleon III opened the doors to high society for the countess. Many admired her beauty, but photography was the only real passion for Virginia. She enjoyed being a fashion model, and Pierson enjoyed filming Virginia. It was the Countess and the court photographer Pierre-Louis Pierson who began to create a new genre of art - a staged photo session. Of course, then no one called a series of photographs of one person in different images. But that was the case.



The Countess did not just pose for the camera, she herself came up with the staging of this or that picture. Of course, as was customary then, almost no one was smiling in the photo, so our Countess almost everywhere went out as an extremely serious woman. However, her photographs were a huge success at the time. Virginia used theatrical costumes, thought out the scenery and poses, starred in the most luxurious dresses.

There are photos of her in the royal robe, in the attire of a nun, in mourning, or even in the attire of an odalisque - in a relaxed position with bare feet. The photographer filmed separately her bare legs, which was then very reprehensible. The Countess found inspiration in theatrical plays, myths, and literature.



Pierre-Louis and Virginia's fantasies have been embodied in numerous photographs. Ladies of secular society tried to imitate her and ordered similar portraits from Pierson, but earthly life is not eternal, and youth sometimes passes even earlier than it is necessary to draw a line. So it happened with the Countess. Her beauty began to fade early. Today, many fashionistas and beauties have a whole arsenal of cosmetic weapons to prolong youth and beauty.

And then what was left of Virginia to do with faded beauty. She not only stopped taking pictures, but also decided to retire from society, lived in her mansion as a recluse, did not receive anyone and went out only in the evenings. They say that all the mirrors were hung, or maybe they weren't there at all, so as not to see yourself? Among people, she rarely appeared, and even then always in a hat with a thick veil that completely covered her face.

The first fashion model Virginia di Castiglione died in 1899 in Paris.

Virginia di Castiglione was a courtesan, she knew how to influence men, she was a trendsetter, but there were many women like that at that time. It was her numerous photographs that brought her fame.

We will not judge or justify Virginia di Castiglione, we can only say one thing - she made an invaluable contribution to the history of photography. Since 1975, the collection of her photos, as a priceless exhibit, has been carefully kept in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.