While visiting Rome, the world-renowned photographer Gregory Crewdson (*1962 in New York) was invited to tour the legendary Italian film studio Cinecittà, where directors such as Federico Fellini and Roberto Rossellini shot their iconic works.

The once elaborate film sets had fallen into ruin. Crewdson, who was captivated by their decaying beauty, knew immediately that he had found his next project.

While Crewdson’s earlier series were staged like Hollywood productions and required a camera crew, actors and a lot of material, he returned to Rome with only a small team and worked mostly with available light to create haunting black-and-white photos of crumbling façades and deserted streets.

However, all this does not really indicate a break with his earlier series. The dramatic subtext so often found in his photographs, the uncanny feeling that they bring the past back to life, remains.

The book focuses on the "Sanctuary" called series of photographs, shown in full-page reproductions and introduced by an essay by A. O. Scott.