In 1956 William Klein published Life is good and good for you in New York in Chris Marker’s "Petite Planète" collection at Seuil éditions. He wants to make movies and leaves for Italy to try his luck alongside Federico Fellini who knew the book but like many others before him, made him wait for the coveted job of assistant. As he wandered through the streets of Rome, he began taking pictures to make a book that, like New York and Tokyo would define and affirm his style and identity as a photograher. Which would make Fellini one day say “Rome is a movie that Klein made”.

Rome is a reflection of the 1950’s, appearing in the same collection as New York in 1959.

50 years later (in 2009), the book would again run in an embellished edition in two volumes with 251 pages entitled Roma + Klein. The MEP is showing, through January 8, 2012, 60 of those pictures printed especially for the exhibition.