Grayson Perry's tapestry series is a contemporary take on William Hogarth's 18th century paintings "A Rake's Progress" which chronicle the decline and fall of young Tom Rockwell. Rockwell is the heir of a rich merchant, and squanders his place in society and his fortune through luxurious living, prostitution, and gambling. Perry updates this narrative questioning taste, cultural identity, and politics through six tapestries that according to Perry explores the "emotional investment we make in the things we choose to live with, wear, eat, read or drive".
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| detail, Upper Class at Bay |
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| Grayson Perry, Expulsion from Number 8 Eden Close from the tapestry series The Vanity of Small Differences, 2012 |
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| Grayson Perry, The Adoration of the Cage Fighters from the tapestry series The Vanity of Small Differences, 2012 |
