Taking Inspiration from a Photo of Sophia Loren
An entrepreneur based in Montreal, Canada, Giuseppina “Penny" Mancuso guides Goddess-Me and works with clients in finding holistic solutions to personal and career transition challenges. One of Penny Mancuso’s inspirations is Sophia Loren, and she recently authored a blog article, “The Goddess in the Cylinder,” on the classic cinema star.
Giuseppina Mancuso describes herself as having always felt, from an “ugly duckling” perspective, that Ms. Loren was her “spirit animal.” This had as much to do with her idolizing Loren’s success “in the grand tradition of Italian Cinema” as an immigrant child, as the actresses’ “fierce beauty,” which presaged independent stars such as Beyonce.
A particular 1965 black and white Terry O'Neil photograph of Loren sitting on a bed, bathed in natural light, spoke to a young Penny Mancuso. It captured a combination of strength, vulnerability, and complexity that she hoped to embody.
Many years later Ms. Mancuso came across this photo as an art gallery still and sent it to a friend. It came back to her undelivered and spoke to her again, in the wake of a challenging divorce process, in which she felt that she had let her family and daughters down. She felt unworthy of being in the presence of this “Goddess” and was about to throw the print away, when her higher self convinced her to frame the picture.
This led to Ms. Mancuso feeling Sophia’s presence throughout the following weeks and months of setbacks, surrender, fear, and triumphs, and taking strength from the photo. Ultimately she felt such a connection with the resilient spirit embodied, that she had her own version of the iconic photo taken in her elder daughter’s bedroom. Taking this picture represented “a massive step forward in healing” as she began to embody in real life the fearless drive Loren had to move forward, whatever the odds.
Giuseppina Mancuso describes herself as having always felt, from an “ugly duckling” perspective, that Ms. Loren was her “spirit animal.” This had as much to do with her idolizing Loren’s success “in the grand tradition of Italian Cinema” as an immigrant child, as the actresses’ “fierce beauty,” which presaged independent stars such as Beyonce.
A particular 1965 black and white Terry O'Neil photograph of Loren sitting on a bed, bathed in natural light, spoke to a young Penny Mancuso. It captured a combination of strength, vulnerability, and complexity that she hoped to embody.
Many years later Ms. Mancuso came across this photo as an art gallery still and sent it to a friend. It came back to her undelivered and spoke to her again, in the wake of a challenging divorce process, in which she felt that she had let her family and daughters down. She felt unworthy of being in the presence of this “Goddess” and was about to throw the print away, when her higher self convinced her to frame the picture.
This led to Ms. Mancuso feeling Sophia’s presence throughout the following weeks and months of setbacks, surrender, fear, and triumphs, and taking strength from the photo. Ultimately she felt such a connection with the resilient spirit embodied, that she had her own version of the iconic photo taken in her elder daughter’s bedroom. Taking this picture represented “a massive step forward in healing” as she began to embody in real life the fearless drive Loren had to move forward, whatever the odds.
