Bert Stern: Original Madman will open at Pasci Contemporary Gallery in Brescia, Milan with a private viewing on October 25, and on public display until February 27, 2026. Although Marilyn’s fabled ‘last sitting’ is a central focus, Stern’s portraits of Audrey Hepburn and others are also featured.
“Bert Stern began his career as a press officer for Look Magazine. The launch of his career coincided with his iconic and legendary campaign for Smirnoff Vodka in 1955. Thanks to the brilliance of that work, he became a star in the world of advertising. The editorial work that followed and his collaboration with VOGUE took Bert Stern to the peak of his career in the 1960s. Sought after by Madison Avenue, Hollywood and the international fashion scene for decades, Stern became the prototype of the fashion photographer as the embodiment of glamour.
Among his most iconic shots, which can be admired in person at Paci Contemporary, are undoubtedly those dedicated to Marilyn Monroe. Bert Stern’s contract with VOGUE gave him creative freedom for 10 pages in each issue of the magazine. In June 1962, he chose to photograph Marilyn, and the shoot took place at the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles. Marilyn died shortly afterwards, on 4 August 1962, at the age of thirty-six, and these photographs, 2571 to be exact, became known as ‘The Last Sitting’, the last photo shoot dedicated to the great diva.”
UPDATE:
An 88-page, hardback book accompanying the exhibition has been published by Dario Cimorelli Editore.
And in other news, Stern’s May 1968 layout for Avant Garde magazine has been ranked 16th in the New York Times‘ list of the 25 Most Influential Magazine Covers of All Time, alongside Ebony‘s eulogy for Dr. Martin Luther King, published in the same month; plus ‘The Doe Eye’ (Vogue, 1950); ‘Women in Revolt’ (Newsweek, 1970); and Madonna (Interview, 1990.)
“The Last Sitting defined Stern’s career but left him unsatisfied: ‘They never quite communicated the dazzling image of Marilyn that existed in my mind’s eye,’ he explained in a 1968 issue of Avant Garde, a short-lived magazine edited and published by Ralph Ginzburg in collaboration with the designer Herb Lubalin. (The latter’s slanted logo gave rise to a typeface of the same name.) A forerunner to zine culture and art-book publishing, Avant Garde offered Stern another chance to get it right by running ‘The Marilyn Monroe Trip,’ a collection of experimental, acid-colored serigraphs, based on his original images, that brought the screen star into the pop-psychedelic era. By contrast, the cover struck an unassuming note, with kraft-style paper in lieu of the usual glossy stock and a palette of umber tones informed by the Southern California landscape: Marilyn Monroe, a natural beauty at last finding her light.” – Laura Regensdorf
“In terms of the art of magazine-making, this is an important cover. The silk screen of Marilyn on kraft paper is by my favorite designer, the legendary designer and magazine maker Herb Lubalin. It’s a very short-lived publication [just 14 issues between 1968 and 1971]. They probably spent all their money on this cover.” – Patrick Li
“I agree — beautiful.” – Adam Moss
The Marilyn Report 
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