Linda McCartney exhibition makes UK debut at Kelvingrove Art Gallery
The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is the first venue in the UK to host the Linda McCartney Retrospective. A Linda McCartney photograph of the Beatles crossing Abbey Road in London can be seen in the background. Image provided by the gallery.
GLASGOW, Scotland – A major retrospective of photography by Linda McCartney has opened in the UK for the first time at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. It will run from July 5, 2019 until January 12, 2020.
The Linda McCartney Retrospective, which is curated by Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney, features iconic names and moments in music from the 1960s, along with more intimate and emotional later work by this acclaimed and prolific photographer.
The retrospective also includes one of Linda McCartney’s diaries from the 1960s, which is displayed in public for the first time. It brings new insight into the contemporary music scene of the era and the beginnings of her photographic career.
The exhibition also features ephemera and archive material, including Linda’s cameras, photographic equipment and a vintage magazine, that have been uncovered from her expansive archive.
The Beatles at Brian Epstein’s home in Belgravia at the launch of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, London 1967. Copyright Paul McCartney / Photographer: Linda McCartney
Sir Paul McCartney said: “It is really good having this exhibition in such a cool gallery in Glasgow. The whole family loves to honor Linda’s work – she would have loved this because Glasgow was a place she loved.
“She loved Scotland because it gave us a lot of fond memories, a lot of freedom and a lot of happy times. It is nice to have all of that encapsulated in the Kelvingrove exhibition.”
Stella McCartney said: “Through these images you meet the real mother I knew. You see her raw and deep talent and passion for her art, photography. Ahead of her time on every level, this mother of four still held her camera close like a companion. She captures the world around her through her eyes and this can be seen on the walls around the exhibition. Her humor, her love of family and nature and her moments framed with a slight surreal edge… Scotland was one of her favorite places on earth, and so many images were taken there. Enjoy her passion and compassion…”
Paul McCartney in Glasgow, 1970. Copyright Paul McCartney / Photographer: Linda McCartney
Themes of the exhibition include The Sixties, Family Life, Self Portraits, Animals and Nature, People & Places, Making the Magic, and Scotland (featuring pictures taken at the family home in Argyll and of people from local communities in Campbeltown).
The exhibition was first shown at the Kunst Hausn Wien museum, Vienna and subsequently at The Pavillon Populaire, Montpellier and Daelim Museum, Seoul.
Linda McCartney, photo taken by Paul McCartney in Scotland, 1970. Copyright Paul McCartney / Photographer: Paul McCartney
Linda McCartney became a professional photographer in the mid-1960s, known for her portraits of Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, among many others. In 1968 she was the first female photographer whose work was featured as the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, with a portrait of Eric Clapton. In 1974, when Linda and Paul appeared on Rolling Stone’s cover, she became the first person to have been photographed and taken a photo for the cover of the magazine: a neat reflection of Linda’s life both in front of and behind the lens.
Following her marriage to Paul McCartney in 1969, Linda’s photographs became more intimate and emotional, exploring the natural world, family life and social commentary.
Lucky Spot in Daisy Field, Sussex, 1985. Copyright Paul McCartney / Photographer: Linda McCartney
Linda McCartney continued to work prolifically as a photographer until her death from breast cancer in 1998. Her work has been exhibited by institutions including the International Center of Photography in New York, the Victoria & Albert Museum and the National Portrait Gallery in London.
The Linda McCartney Retrospective takes place at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow, Scotland. Image courtesy of the gallery
Councillor David McDonald, Chair of Glasgow Life and Deputy Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: “The Linda McCartney Retrospective at Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is surely one of the most highly anticipated exhibitions of 2019.
“We are delighted to be the first venue in the UK to be showing this exhibition, which explores the full spectrum of photographic work by Linda McCartney. From her early career as a photographer working in a sector dominated at the time by men, to her documentation of her family life and the natural world, it’s a captivating insight into a brilliant artist during the many different periods of her photographic practice.”
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About the exhibition
The Linda McCartney Retrospective is on view at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, Scotland.
Dates: Friday, July 5, 2019 – Sunday, January 12, 2020
Open Monday to Thursday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday and Sunday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tickets: £7 adults/ £5 concession/ under 16 free.
About the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is located on Argyle Street, Glasgow, Scotland G3 8AG. Tel: 011 44 141 276 9599
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