La Moretta

Photographer: Enzo Dainotti @enzodainotti // Model: Alphonse Eklou Uwantege @alphonseeklouuwantege // Wardrobe Credits: Skirt : Pinko – Mask : Handcrafted made in Venice – Jewelry : model’s own

This editorial series reinterprets La Moretta, an 17th/18th-century Venetian mask historically worn by white women of the Venetian upper class. Held in place by a button between the teeth, the mask imposed silence while turning the wearer into an object of fascination and mystery. It embodied a paradox, concealing the face while intensifying desire, transforming silence into seduction.

Through this photographic series, I revisit this symbol from a contemporary perspective by placing it on a black non-binary subject, someone historically excluded from the social and cultural space the mask originally belonged to. This deliberate shift becomes central to the project, questioning who has been allowed visibility, mystery and power and who has been denied access to these representations.
My intention is to challenge the racial and gendered codes attached to the Moretta by reversing its original meaning. What once represented silence, passivity and projection becomes a tool of reclamation and self-definition.

The visual direction is built around contrast, black and white tones, sharp compositions and a minimalist setting that emphasizes the dialogue between body, clothing and mask. The styling plays with concealment and exposure, drawing attention to the tension between vulnerability and power. The skirt subtly references silhouettes worn during the period of the Moretta, anchoring the styling in its historical context, while the bare chest intensifies the confrontation with conventional gendered expectations of the body.

The act of removing the mask becomes central to the narrative. It is not simply a reveal, but a symbolic gesture, reclaiming identity, voice and agency. By reimagining a historical object within a contemporary context, the series reveals the tensions between mystery and assertion, while questioning the constructs of race, gender and representation.