Hollywood Royale: Out of the School of Los Angeles

One of a handful of artists to emerge from Andy Warhol’s celebrity-focused Interview magazine, Matthew Rolston is a well-established icon of Hollywood photography. Alongside such luminaries as Herb Ritts and Greg Gorman, Rolston was a member of an influential group of photographers (among them, Bruce Weber, Annie Leibovitz, and Steven Meisel) who came from the 1980´s magazine scene. Rolston helped define the era’s take on celebrity image-making, gender bending, and much more. Edited by Los Angeles–based gallerist and curator David Fahey, this book, Rolston’s fourth monograph, presents a stunning array of portraits that beautifully capture the decade and its myriad talents. From Michael Jackson and Madonna, to Prince, George Michael, and Cyndi Lauper, the images reflect a seamless blend of style, skill, and scintillation. This volume features over 100 mesmerising photographs selected from Rolston’s extensive body of work, centering on his unforgettable portraits of the era’s most famous personalities. With essays by authors Pat Hackett, Andy Warhol's longtime collaborator and diarist; Colin Westerbeck, noted photographic curator and expert on American photographer Irving Penn; and Charles Churchward, longtime creative director of Vogue and Vanity Fair and author of The Golden Hour, a definitive biography of Herb Ritts, Hollywood Royale: Out of the School of Los Angeles, paints a fascinating picture of an indelible image-maker and the film stars, models, and artists he immortalised during this period. Rolston’s photographs recall the glamour of “Old Hollywood” with postmodern irony, helping to point the way towards the cult of fame we live with today.

Matthew Rolton is an artist who works in photography and video. In 1977, Rolston was ‘discovered’ by Andy Warhol, who commissioned portraits for protocelebrity magazine, Interview, followed by assignments for Rolling Stone from founding editor Jann Wenner, and soon after, by Vanity Fair, under editors Tina Brown and later, Graydon Carter. Rolston’s 1980s images are notable for their glamorous lighting and detail-rich sets. His work has helped define the contemporary aesthetics of American portrait photography. Rolston’s photographs have been exhibited worldwide and are in the permanent collections of LACMA and the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., among others.