Kevin Cummins (photographer)
| Kevin Cummins | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 July 1953 Manchester, England |
| Nationality | British |
| Field | Photography |
Kevin Cummins (born 14 July 1953 Manchester, England) is a British photographer, perhaps most famous for his photographs of rock bands and musicians. He has photographed a large number of legendary musicians throughout his career, including Mick Jagger, Ian Curtis, Morrissey, Courtney Love, Patti Smith, and David Bowie.
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[edit] Career
Cummins studied photography in Salford.[1] He started photographing rock bands in the mid 1970s in Manchester.[2] Cummins had a 25-year association with the NME,[3] including 10 years as their chief photographer.[4] He has photographed all the major musicians including Joy Division, Manic Street Preachers,[5] The Clash,[6] Sex Pistols, R.E.M., U2, Patti Smith, Marc Bolan, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, The Smiths, Roisin Murphy, Oasis, Foo Fighters, Courtney Love, Michael Hutchence, The Stone Roses[7] and Buzzcocks. His images have been seen a contributing factor in the rise of the Madchester and Cool Britannia scenes.[8]
Cummins was instrumental in establishing City Life,[9] Manchester's what’s on guide and was a founding contributor to The Face, the influential style magazine where he won an award for Magazine Cover of the Year.[10]
Cummins’s photographs have been used extensively in cinema and TV documentaries including Grant Gee's Joy Division and John Dower's Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Brit Pop.[11]
In November 2009, Kevin was awarded an Outstanding Contribution to Music Photography award by the music industry website: Record of the Day.[12]
He worked extensively for the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester when it opened in the late 1970s through to mid-1980s. He shoots regularly for the National Theatre in London, most recently Harper Regan and Mrs Affleck.[13]
A life long Manchester City supporter,[14] Cummins documented City's final season at Maine Road in the book We're Not Really Here.
[edit] Exhibitions
- 1981 Stage Struck – Royal Exchange, Manchester
- 1983 Rock Stars – The Orchard, Dartford, Kent
- 1983 Access all Areas – Royal Exchange, Manchester
- 1985 Silent Faces – Oldham City Art Gallery
- 1986 Minor Characters – The Scott Gallery, Lancaster
- 1986 Cummins 10 – The Cornerhouse, Manchester (Part of the Festival of the Tenth Summer[15])
- 1986–96 The Way We Were – Wigan Heritage Centre
- 1987 Salfordians – Viewpoint Gallery, Salford
- 1994 Salfordians – Salford City Art Gallery
- 2002 The Smiths and Beyond – Proud Central, London[16]
- 2003 We're Not Really Here – Richard Goodall Gallery, Manchester[17]
- 2006 Arca: Joy Division – Paul Stolper Gallery, London [18]
- 2007 Score – Proud Gallery at Austin Reed, London
- 2009 “The Crucial 30: Post Punk Liverpool” by Kevin Cummins at The Hard Day’s Night Hotel Gallery, Liverpool [19]
- 2009 MANCHESTER: Looking for the Light Through the Pouring Rain. Photographs by Kevin Cummins - Richard Goodall Gallery, Manchester [20]
- 2010 MANCHESTER: SO MUCH TO ANSWER FOR … KEVIN CUMMINS at Spazio Gerra, Reggio Emilia, Italy[21]
- 2011 Exemplar: Joy Division at Proud Gallery, London [22] [23] [24]
[edit] Work
- 1999 The National Portrait Gallery chose three of Cummins' photographs for their Icon's of Pop exhibition.[25]
- 2005 British pop artist Peter Blake produced a screen print based on one of Kevin’s Joy Division prints.[26]
[edit] Bibliography
- The Smiths and Beyond (2002)
- We're Not Really Here: Manchester City’s Final Season at Maine Road (2003)
- Juvenes (2007)
- Manchester: Looking For the Light Through the Pouring Rain (2009) Faber & Faber[27]
- Joy Division (Published November 2010 by Rizzoli)[28]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Independent Newspaper article about Kevin Cummins 12 March 2002
- ^ Cummins, Kevin. "Closer to the birth of a music legend". The Observer. 12 August 2007. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ NME news item about Kevin's 25 year stint there
- ^ Tony Wilson talking about Kevin Cummins and his relationship with City Life and his 10 year stint as chief photographer on the NME
- ^ Cummins, Kevin. "Richey Edwards". The Observer. 14 December 2008. Retrieved on 3 February 2009
- ^ Savage, Jon. "Spit and polish". The Guardian. 24 September 1999. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ Kevin Cummins Stone Roses cover for NME
- ^ [www.redeye.org.uk/redeye/pdf/RedeyeTalks0405.pdf Biography of Kevin Cummins which appears on Red Eye's site]
- ^ Short biography on Vauxhall's Style Council website (takes quite a long time to load up)
- ^ "Kevin Cummins". Rockarchive. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ "Kevin Cummins (III)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ Record of the Day full list of 2009 awards
- ^ "NT : What's On : Productions : Mrs Affleck". National Theatre. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ Kevin Cummins Man City fan
- ^ Flyer relating to Cummins 10 at the Festival of the Tenth Summer
- ^ review of The Smiths and Beyond in The Observer
- ^ BBC report about We're Not Really Here exhibition
- ^ Paul Stolper Gallery
- ^ [1] New Statesman article by Kevin Sampson
- ^ Exhibition review in City Life, Manchester
- ^ Fotografia Europea 2010, Reggio Emilia
- ^ Proud Gallery website
- ^ Review of Proud Gallery exhibition
- ^ Kevin Cummins' best shot in The Guardian October 2011
- ^ "Kevin Cummins (1953-), Photographer". National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ "Peter Blake Love Portfolio". Paul Stoper. Retrieved on 3 February 2009.
- ^ Faber&Faber website
- ^ Rizzoli website
