life. Especially poignant is Judy Linn’s
black-and-white photograph of a young
Patti Smith relaxing on a sofa bed in the
messy apartment she shared with the
photographer Robert Mapplethorpe in the
early 1970s, before either became famous.
The exhibition is divided into six sections:
rare and revealing images taken behind
the scenes; tender snapshots of young
musicians at the beginnings of their
careers; exhilarating photographs of live
performances that display the energy,
passion, style, and sex appeal of the
band on stage; powerful images of the
crowds and fans that are often evocative
of historic paintings; 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 the
musicians. Amidst the silent and still
images are ?lms and videos which capture
both the energy of performance and the
changing vehicles for rock and roll.
Who Shot Rock & Roll is enjoyable from
multiple vantage points: as pure nostalgia
and as an examination of the symbiotic
relationship between photography and
music to de?ne the rebellion of rock
and roll. But if we look even deeper,
these photographs can also bring to light
meanings and metaphors that we have
come to take for granted in the cult of
rock: hero worship, sexual aggression,
gender role-playing, youthful rebellion
and the development of our fascination
with “image.” I am reminded of the very
?rst music video played on MTV, “Video
Killed the Radio Star” by The Buggles
(don’t worry if you’ve never heard of
them) and how critical the relationship
has become between image and music (a
great video—and a pretty face—can turn
a mediocre song into an overnight smash
hit). The majority of the photographs in
this exhibition celebrate the “fringeness”
or counter-culture nature of rock
musicians and one is left to ponder how
some of these early icons and trailblazers
would fair in today’s world of American
Idol and an image-conscious, globalized
music scene.
Presenting Sponsors
Dr. Suzan D. Boyd &
Mr. M. Edward Sellers
Dr. and Mrs. Ronald C. Rogers
columbiamuseum.org
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