The November 2024 issue of Vogue Poland [IG] is dedicated to the synergy between cinema and fashion. The fashion story featuring Africa Garcia was styled by London-based Ashlee Barrett-Bourmier, who chose Del Core, Dolce & Gabbana, Jil Sander, Loro Piana, Maison Alaia, Miu Miu, Patou, Simone Rocha, YSL and more to capture a partial mood of the title of the fashion story ‘marzenia ściętych głów’ [‘Dreams of Decapitated Heads’].

Looking at the translated title of the story, the reaction was “what in the world!!” Then we discovered that James Giles [IG] photographed the story in the last home of Giuseppe Tomasi, author of ‘The Leopard’, in the Palazzo Lanza Tomasi, Palermo, Italy.

Ah yes, ‘The Leopard’ with Deva Cassel in a key role: Deva Cassel, Filming 'The Leopard', Covers Harper's Bazaar Taiwan May 2024 by JUANKR AOC Fashion

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa’s literary legacy, primarily built on his novel "The Leopard," has had a profound impact on the world of literature and Italian culture. Although the novel was published posthumously in 1958, it quickly became recognized as a masterpiece, cementing Tomasi’s role as a key figure in 20th-century literature.

The 1963 original movie ‘The Leopard’, an Italian cinema classic, won the 1963 Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

Netflix has the series set for early 2025 but there’s talk of the first episode being released next month around the holidays. The official teaser dropped today. All reports describe the project as Netflix’s most ambitious Italian original project to date.

Netflix writes:

“The Leopard is a dazzlingly sensuous epic, set against the backdrop of revolution in 1860s Sicily. At its heart is Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, who leads a life surrounded by beauty and privilege. But as Italy moves towards unification and the old aristocratic order is threatened, he realizes that his family's future is in jeopardy. New allegiances must be made, each one a threat to his principles. Eventually Don Fabrizio is faced with an impossible choice. He has the power to engineer a marriage, between the rich and beautiful Angelica and his nephew Tancredi, that could secure his family's legacy but, doing so would break his favorite daughter, Concetta's heart. The series will be a modern exploration of timeless themes -- power, love, and the cost of progress.”

‘The Leopard’ provides a richly detailed and introspective exploration of Sicilian aristocracy during the Risorgimento, capturing the complexities of historical transitions into a unified Italy in the novel and Netflix series. Across Europe similar movements were attached to the creation of liberal democracies.

Revolution Swept Through Europe

Spanning roughly from 1815 to 1871, this era covered in the Netflix production ‘The Leopard’ was marked by a series of political, social, and military activities that sought to consolidate the various fragmented states of the Italian peninsula into a single nation. The movement was driven by a mix of nationalism, strategic diplomacy, revolutionary ideas, and armed conflict.

AOC has much more information about the ‘Risorgimento’. We will issue it as a Part 2 background of this story that is largely text. The military aspects of the period caused major casualties and disruptions of aging institutions and the people attached to them. I’m sure we’ll be seeing plenty of Netflix-sponsored fashion stories around the series.

Anne assumes this is the Vogue Poland title context for this fashion story ‘marzenia ściętych głów’ [‘Dreams of Decapitated Heads’]. The aristocracy was fearing for their heads to have an appointment with the guillotine, as revolutionary zeal swept through the European continent.

Anne of Carversville refuses to just put words to paper without understanding their context, and I know this trait is deeply appreciated by the many friends of AOC.

What a ride we just had trying to sort out why Vogue Poland would use such an extreme headline. If it said ‘Portraits of Our Ancestors’ or ‘Italian Unification’, I would not have had the same tenacity to break down the title. And we were on Instagram #5 before we learned the location and ‘The Leopard’ book. Then I knew there was a film involved with ‘The Leopard’ and recalled the Deva Cassel angle.

I’ve said many times that when my one assistant and I start writing, we truly have no idea where we are going. This is the Internet at its best, with a fabulous AI scholarly research asset at our side. ~ Anne