Marchesa Luisa Casati

Marchesa Casati once said: “I want to be a living work of art!”. She was an eccentric Italian heiress, muse, and patroness of the arts in early 20th century Europe. She was also the female version of a dandy and a true femme fatale. Characters based on Casati were played by Vivien Leigh in "La Contessa" and by Ingrid Bergman in the movie "A Matter of Time". But in real life, by 1930 Casati had amassed a personal debt of $25 million and all her possessions were auctioned off. She died in poverty in 1957.