“I can love peace or violence, wisdom or madness, heat or cold, but I can never love mediocrity.” – Romy Schneider

In 1974, at the age of 36, Romy Schneider felt the need to prove that she was still beautiful. She called the Italian photographer Giancarlo Botti. The photoshoot took place in her Parisian apartment and lasted over eight hours. Botti remembers the session as, “one of the longest of [his] career, but also one of [his] best memories.” Eight years later, on May 29, 1982, Schneider’s heart stopped beating after a series of traumatic events, most importantly the death of her son, David, at 14. The weekly magazine Paris-Match published this series of photos to commemorate the 25th anniversary of her death.