Today’s edition is dedicated to photographer Matthew Rolston on the occasion of the unveiling of his latest body of work Vanitas: The Palermo Portraits. 13 years in the making, this series is the subject of four simultaneous exhibitions across the city of Los Angeles, from Fahey/Klein Gallery to ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, from the Daido Moriyama Museum/Daido Star Space in downtown Los Angeles to the Leica Gallery in West Hollywood, all alongside the release of a limited-edition monograph on Nazraeli Press. Next week is the one and only moment in which all four exhibitions will be open at the same time.
This is probably Rolston’s most personal and precious work. Beyond 13 years of dedication to a single project, the monograph publication is purposefully limited to only 500 copies. Further, Fahey/Klein Gallery will offer only 10 prints for sale, each of them unique, not editioned as is the usual custom with photography. All in all, a most unusual and select approach.
Vanitas gives us the perfect opportunity to look back at the breadth of Rolston’s career, from Hollywood stars to the dummies of his Talking Heads series, and now to the mummies of Palermo. That creative diversity aside, it was always about the portrait for Rolston… one must wonder what will come next.
Not only did Matthew give us unprecedented access to his archive for this special edition, he and his assistant Jeremy spent countless hours curating the photographs, videos and texts to come, in the different sections of this edition. Texts include writings by Matthew and also Philip Gefter, Ingrid Sischy… Matthew answered Carole Schmitz’s questionnaire (the most extended and illustrated entry since its inception), and also agreed to an interview.
We are very proud of this edition. There is quite a lot to look at and to read, so in another unusual touch, we have decided to offer this edition with complete free access until Sunday.
Bon apppétit!
GD.
In this award presentation video, Matthew shares a lifetime of work across diverse areas of practice, from photography to filmmaking, creative direction, publishing, philanthropy, education, and more. As an ArtCenter Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Matthew follows in the footsteps of other of the College’s alumni in the photography and fine art spaces, including Hiroshi Sugimoto, Doug Aitken and Lee Friedlander. Watch Matthew’s journey from editorial photography to personal fine art projects — conceptual explorations of the human condition.
Copyright © ArtCenter College of Design. All rights reserved.
Vanitas: The Palermo Portraits
Exhibition run dates:
ArtCenter College of Design: September 20 to November 9, 2025
https://www.artcenter.edu/about/exhibitions/vanitas-the-palermo-portraits.html
Fahey/Klein Gallery, Los Angeles: September 25 to November 8, 2025
https://www.faheykleingallery.com/exhibitions/matthew-rolston-vanitas-the-palermo-portraits
Daido Moriyama Museum/Daido Star Space: September 30 to October 23, 2025
https://www.moriyamadaido.com/en/
Leica Gallery, Los Angeles: October 26 to November 2, 2025
https://leicagalleryla.com/gallery-view/eternity-and-dust-matthew-rolstons-vanitas/
Vanitas: The Palermo Portraits
The monograph
Nazraeli Press
https://www.nazraeli.com/complete-catalogue/matthew-rolston-vanitas-the-palermo-portraits
Matthew Rolston
https://www.matthewrolston.com/
