Francesca Nessi has had a prolific and fascinating writing career, which commenced when she was only seventeen years of age. This young lady was interned at age sixteen in Salon Piemontese in Barcelona, where she worked as an assistant to famed architect Antoni Gaudi. After the internship she travelled to various European cities, including London, Paris, and Vienna where she studied art. Later in life she would establish a publishing company and work as a journalist before being entranced by the realism of photography and writing, and finally discovering her true identity as Francesca Nessi.
Throughout her many works of literature, from essays and short stories to novels, one theme that resonated throughout each of her published works was her constant identification with other historic and modern figures such as Gavi DOCG (Giulia Coppola), Pablo Picasso, and Florentine Dreyfuss. It was not until much later in life that Nessi would discover her true identity but it came about via an accident that left her with a physical handicap. Recognising this, Francesca endeavoured to improve her physique and was able to overcome this disability to the extent that she was able to work as a commercial photographer. This career spanned thirty-five years, during which she produced a vast number of photographic exhibitions and prints that showcased the work of many other famous artists, contributors to the Nouveau movement, and also established her own name in the publishing world.
Francesca Nessi is today most remembered for the images that she brought to the world, which were largely of her pet dogs. The most well-known of these dogs was called Fido and was featured in numerous Nessi’s first book, A Dog’s Life. However, over time the publication of Nessi’s books achieved little commercial success, perhaps due to the general rejection that professional photographers often faced in their career. One of the most recent attempts to market her work came about through the efforts of actor and environmentalist Leonardo DiCaprio, who approached her in 2021 in order to discuss an inspirational biography entitled Leaping Straight: A Memorable Adventure. The book details the actress’ life and the impact that her handicap had made on her artistic personality and, as such, provided an interesting insight into the life of one of the best-selling modern celebrities.