[Countess de Castiglione, from Série des Roses] 1895

This photograph, part of the "Série des Roses," was crafted by Pierre-Louis Pierson, capturing the Countess de Castiglione amidst a sea of roses. The rose, an emblem of Venus, speaks to beauty, love, and also to transience. Observe how the Countess is adorned—crowned and draped with roses, their thorny stems now tamed into ornaments. We find echoes of Botticelli's Venus, born of the sea, cloaked in blossoms. But here, the rose takes on a melancholic hue, as the Countess leans pensively, fan in hand. The fan itself, a tool of flirtation and concealment, has evolved since ancient times, when it was used in royal ceremonies as a symbol of power. The gesture of the Countess resting her head upon her hand speaks to a weariness, as the ephemeral nature of beauty and the fleeting quality of life itself are felt. This image is charged with the weight of memory, a reminder of our own fleeting existence.