READY TO ROCK THE ART WORLD

Henry Diltz, American, b. 1938. “Tina Turner, Universal Amphitheater, Los Angeles,” 1985, printed 2009, chromogenic print 24 x 20 in. (61 x 50.8 cm). Henry Diltz/Morrison Hotel Gallery © Henry Diltz.

ALLENTOWN ART MUSEUM OF THE LEHIGH VALLEY

Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History 1955 to Present comes to the Lehigh Valley

Who Shot Rock & Roll is the first major exhibition on rock and roll to put photographers in the foreground and acknowledge their creative and collaborative role in the history of rock music. The exhibition includes 175 works by more than 100 photographers, and covers the rock and roll era from the 1950s to the present, including some of the world’s most iconic images.

Organized by the prestigious Brooklyn Museum of Art, with guest curator Gail Buckland, the exhibition has already toured nationally in several cities to outstanding reviews, and the Allentown Art Museum is bringing this exhibition to the Lehigh Valley. It opens to the public Sunday, February 12, 2012 with a sneak preview rock party on Saturday, February 11, 2012.

Who Shot Rock & Roll is broken into six sections, chronicling not the history of rock and roll itself, but the photographers responsible for giving the genre its visual identity. The sections offer rare and revealing images taken behind the scenes; tender snapshots of young musicians at the beginning of their careers; exhilarating photographs of live performances; powerful images of the crowds and fans that are often associated with rock and roll; portraits revealing the soul and creativity, rather than the surface and celebrity, of the musicians; and conceptual images and album covers highlighting the collaborative efforts between the image makers and musicians.

“The photographs in this exhibition mirror the depth, breadth, artistry and passion of the music and the musicians and the exuberance of the fans,” said Buckland. “Just as there is no one soundtrack that is rock, there is no one photographic vision.”

Among the works on view are such iconic images as William “Red” Robertson’s erotic 1955 photo of a pelvis-thrusting Elvis Presley that appeared on his first album; The Clash’s famous London Calling album cover by Pennie Smith depicting Paul Simon smashing his Fender bass guitar; the contact sheet of Bob Gruen’s portrait of John Lennon in a sleeveless New York City T-shirt ; Anton Corbijn’s shoot of U2 for their Joshua Tree album and the full sequence of never-before-exhibited photographs by Ed Caraeff of Jimi Hendrix at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

Rock icons are nothing without their image – a knowledge Buckland embraced when organizing the exhibition, striving to give rock photographers the credit they deserve. “Rock and roll was a bipartite revolution: the sound and the image,” she said. “The music alone could not create the revolution. The kids were reacting to the hairstyles and the clothes and the body language. And the people who gave rock its image are very, very important. Revolutions have to be documented to be believed.”

Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History 1955 to Present is on view at the Allentown Art Museum of the Lehigh Valley February 11, 2012 – May 13, 2012.

Exhibition Catalogue

Serving as the exhibition catalogue is a 320-page hardcover book authored by Gail Buckland, titled Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History, 1955 to Present. The book contains 298 color and black and white photographs, along with commentary about each image’s photographer, their influences and relationships with the musicians and how they “saw what they saw and captured what they captured.”

Who Shot Rock & Roll will be sold in the Museum Store for $40.

This exhibition is organized by the Brooklyn Museum with guest curator Gail Buckland.

Presenting Sponsors: County of Lehigh, Duggan & Marcon, Inc. and The Harry C. Trexler Trust

Major Sponsors: ArtsQuest, The Express-Times and lehighvalleylive.com, The Leon C. and June W. Holt Endowment, Klunk & Millan Advertising, Lehigh Valley Style and 99.9 The Hawk

Sustaining Sponsors: Acopian Power Supplies, Air Products and Chemicals, Inc., The Audrey and Bernard Berman Endowment Fund, Martin Guitar, State Theatre Center for the Arts, Wells Fargo, WDIY 88.1 FM, Lehigh Valley Community Public Radio

Supporting Sponsors: Alvin H. Butz, Inc., Barry Isett and Associates; Capital Blue Cross, Cigars International, ICON, , Univest Bank and Trust Company

Danny Clinch, American, b. 1964. “Tupac Shakur,” August 1993, gelatin silver print 20 x 16 in. (50.8 x 40.6 cm). Courtesy of Danny Clinch.

Related Programming

Who Shot Rock Preview Party

Saturday, February 11, 2012 7pm – 11pm

Party like a Rock Star and be the first to see this exciting collection of historic rock photography and videos. Come dressed as your favorite rock star! Music, food and cash bar. Free for members, $15 for non-members. Reserve your ticket at 610.432.4333 x128. Look for more information on the Museum’s website at www.allentownartmuseum.org.

Preview Party Sponsor: Bennett Automotive Group

Special Curator Talk
Gail Buckland, Who Shot Rock & Roll
Sunday, February 12

2:00-4:00 PM

Gail Buckland, noted historian and guest curator of Who Shot Rock & Roll: A Photographic History, 1955 to the Present, gives a talk on the special exhibition. A graduate of the University of Rochester, Buckland is a Distinguished Visiting Professor and the former Olympus Visiting Professor of the History of Photography at The Cooper Union, New York City where she has taught since 1979. She has also taught at Columbia College, Sarah Lawrence, Chicago and Pratt Institute, Brooklyn. She is the author or collaborator on thirteen books of photography and history. A signing of the companion book follows.

Special Lecture
Godlis: Shooting Rock & Roll
Sunday, February 26

2:00-4:00 PM

Join us when rock photographer Godlis talks about his experiences behind the lens shooting rock and roll. (David) Godlis began photographing at CBGB in 1976. As a refugee of the New York City street photography scene, his work reveals an infatuation with Leica cameras, long handheld exposures, and Brassai’s classic night photographs of the 1930’s. His grainy black and white images document the NYC punk scene of the 1970’s under the Bowery streetlights. Born in 1951 in New York City, he attended Imageworks School of Photography in Cambridge, Massachusetts 1973-1975, before moving to New York City, where he now resides.
$5 members, $15 non-members.

Special Lecture

Terry Stewart: President and CEO, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Thursday, March 1

6:00-8:00 PM

Terry Stewart has been the President and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum since 1999. The Hall of Fame and Museum, a nonprofit organization, exists to educate visitors, music fans and scholars from around the world about the history and continuing significance of rock and roll music. Since opening in 1995, the Hall of Fame and Museum has welcomed more than eight million people with annual visitors coming from all 50 states in the U.S. and more than 100 countries.
$5 members, $15 non-members.

Special Lecture

Glamor Garb: Rock & Roll Costumes

Fred Dennis, Senior Curator of Costume, The Museum at FIT
Tuesday, March 6

6:00-8:00 PM

Costumes have always helped define rock and roll. Join us when Fred Dennis shows us how fashion has influenced rock and how the music has influenced fashion. Fred has been with the Museum at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) for over 20 years and has worked on some of the museum’s most popular exhibitions including: Japan Fashion Now, Gothic: Dark Glamour, The Corset: Fashioning the Body, China Chic: East Meets West. Most recently Fred co-curated the ground breaking, Daphne Guinness, which is currently on view. Fred also has a rock-influenced past; he was costumer for the rock group Boston.
$5 members, $15 non-members.

Art After Hours: Rock the Halls

March 15

5:30 – 8:00 PM

Jimi Hendrix, Sonic Youth, The Beatles, Grace Jones, Dylan, The Ramones, Sting, Jagger, Patti Smith, Blondie and Springstein are some of the folks sharing the galleries with us tonight. Posed or candid these images set the stage for an evening of entertainment based on the exhibit, Who Shot Rock & Roll. Join us as we celebrate the music and the times with food, fun and maybe a few facts about the artists behind these great photographs. How often do you get to party with Prince and Eminem? Wear your rock inspired garb- we dare you.

$10 members; $20 non-members. Advance reservations strongly recommended 610-432-4333 ext. 154 or events@allentownartmuseum.org

Special Lecture

Martin Guitar’s Influence on American Musical Culture with Dick Boak, Director of Artist Relations, Martin Guitar

Tuesday, March 22

6:00-8:00 PM

Dick Boak manages Artist and Public Relations as well as Museum Exhibits and Historical Archives for the world-renowned Martin Guitar Company in Nazareth, PA. He established Martin’s Signature Edition guitar program which has produced collaborative models for more than 150 legendary artists including Eric Clapton, Paul Simon, Jimmy Buffett, Dave Matthews, Joan Baez, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Stephen Stills, and Sting. His acclaimed book Martin Guitar Masterpieces relays the stories of those collaborations.
$5 members, $15 non-members.

Special Lecture
Writing Rock with David Fricke, Senior Editor, Rolling Stone Magazine

Tuesday, March 27

6:00-8:00 PM

David Fricke has been described as the legendary rock writer of our times. A Muhlenberg College alumnus and suburban Philadelphia native, David has been writing for Rolling Stone for over 25 years. He has interviewed most of Rock’s biggest names such as Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Kurt Cobain, Bob Dylan, Wilco and Phish. Join us in an interactive conversation as David shares some of his experiences of over thirty years of writing about rock & roll.
$5 members, $15 non-members.

Winter Family Festival: Shake, Rattle and Roll!

Sunday, March 25
Noon-4:00 PM

Jitterbug and jive your way into the Winter Festival at the Allentown Art Museum of the Lehigh Valley! Hipcats of all ages will have a good time rockin’ to the music and entertainment that are sure to ignite the superstar in all of us. You may even see the King himself!
Our special exhibition, Who Shot Rock and Roll and music inspired art activities are guaranteed to help you get your groove on. See you on the Red Carpet and don’t forget to wear your jazziest outfit. Winter Family Festival is part of Free Sundays at the Museum. Leadership support provided by The John and Fannie Saeger Trust. Performance support provided by The Bessie S. Graham Music Fund. Family Festival is presented by Capital Blue Cross.