Returning from a trip to France where I visited the Louvre, I was struck at how similar Charlotte's smile was to the women (Virgins) and angels represented by Leonardo di Vinci. There is something absolutely bewitching about her smile, as if it came from a spirit or directly from a work of art (many angel sculptures on the outside of churches are evocative of that mystery too.) Her smile is so very different from her mother's , which is always so bright, so direct, so dazzling (except in a few pictures, indeed those taken at the Dance Forum.) Is Karl Lagerfeld so good that he can bring out the essence of a person (that "mystery" in Charlotte) through his photographs, or bring out another facet of personality in a person, such as in Caroline's more subdued smile ? Also, Charlotte rarely seems to be looking right at you, just like da Vinci's figures, as if she wanted to keep a certain distance, like spiritual figures who need to be separated from the world. Perhaps that is her way of protecting herself from all that media attention, when her mother's brilliant, mediterranean temperament was to face it squarely, until it got to be too much.
A fashion note : I attended a New Year's party at on old breton (Brittany) chateau that accepts paying guests (from Relais et Chateaux). Also attending was a party of 12, local, apparently very wealthy art collectors or dealers. All the women wore black, either a dress (rare) or a pant suit, very tight and couture. Not a thread of color to be seen, hardly any jewelry. I was amazed but enlightened if I may say so. It looked more like a funeral party than a New Year's party, but this minimalist, "subtle" style seems to be de rigueur in the upper echelons, making those of us who like color look garish and gaudy. Anyway, that explains (to me at least) why all the black on the Monaco princesses.