Large format photograph of a summer beach scene on the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa, from an earlier body of works (2012) by iconic Italian photographer Massimo Vitali, renowned for his grand scale topographical observations of the rites and rituals of modern leisure
Lampedusa (2012)
61.25” x 81.7” / 156 cm x 207,5 cm
limited edition of 6 + 2AP (signed, titled and dated on certificate of authenticity)
last available edition: AP1
original archival photography print with diasec (acrylic glass) face mount in contemporary white lacquered gallery frame
Each limited edition original Massimo Vitali photograph is printed in Italy under artist supervision in strictly limited edition (6 + 2AP) , signed/titled/dated upon final inspection and expertly framed at renowned European art framing facility
Disclaimer of authenticity:
although it is possible to acquire (small size) single page offset prints from the book "A Portfolio of Landscapes and Figures" (published by Steidl) in the secondary market, the artist studio strongly dissuades collectors from purchasing these single page prints outside of the context and authenticity of the complete portfolio.
About the artist:
Massimo Vitali was born in Como, Italy, in 1944.
He studied photography at the London College of Printing, in the 1970s initially working as a photojournalist, but at the beginning of the 80s a growing mistrust in the belief that photography had an absolute capacity to reproduce the subtleties of reality led to a change in his career path.
Vitali worked in cinematography for film and television before beginning a fine art practice in 1995.
Over the next two decades, he would gain recognition for his highly detailed, epic-scale panoramas — sociopolitical observations of the natural habitat of humankind at leisure. Vitali’s iconic series of beach panoramas, captured from a distance with an elevated large-format camera platform, began in the light of drastic political changes in Italy.
Drawing inspiration from Renaissance and Old Flemish masters, in which the central space is fully exploited and the urban or natural landscape becomes the background, Vitali’s photographs grasp the viewer by capturing highly detailed observances of the recreational habitats of modern civilization.
Vitali’s work has been collected in six monographs: Beach and Disco, Natural Habitats, Landscapes With Figures, Swimming Pools, Short Stories and Entering A New World.
Additionally, his work is represented in the world’s major museums, including the Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid, the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, the Fond National Art Contemporaine in Paris, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris, the Fondation Cartier in Paris and the Museo Luigi Pecci in Prato.
Massimo Vitali lives and works in Lucca (Italy) and in Berlin (Germany).
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SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2025 94/22
Zander Galerie, Cologne
2024 Photolux Festival - Il bel paese?
Palazzo Ducale, Lucca, Italy
2023 La Grande Oasi - The way we live, now
OCA, Oasy Contemporary Art, Pistoia
2023
Standing Still
Cortona On The Move, Arezzo, Italy
2022
Massimo Vitali PhotoESPANA
Biblioteca Central Cantabria, Santander
2022
Endless Summer
Edwin Hook Gallery, New York
2022
Massimo Vitali: Leporello 2020
Melbourne
2022
Ti ho visto
Mazzoleni Gallery, Turin
2021
PienoVuoto
Forte di Belvedere, Florence
2021
No Country For Old Men
Visionarea Art Space, Rome
2020
'Human Constellations'
Museo Ettore Fico, Turin
2019
Massimo Vitali: Short Stories'
Mazzoleni, London
2018
'Coastal Colonies'
Spiral, Tokyo
2017
‘Disturbed Coastal Systems’
Benrubi Gallery...
Materials
Plexiglass, Wood, Photographic Film, Archival Paper, Photographic Paper