An exhibit showcasing photographs of illustrious poet and music legend Bob Dylan will be on display at Monmouth University’s Pollak Gallery beginning October 20th. The exhibit, curated by the GRAMMY Museum and titled “Bob Dylan: Photographs by Daniel Kramer” will feature intimate rock portraits of the American singer-songwriter during the years 1964-65.
Daniel Kramer’s photography played a role in helping Dylan, now 75 years old, to gain broader recognition early in his career. In a press release from the Pollak Gallery, Kramer’s work is described as having, “revealed the rising young star to international audiences,” and “set a standard by which all other rock portraits would be judged.” Kramer’s photography was instrumental in bridging rock music and photojournalism in the 60s and 70s, especially for Dylan, with whom Kramer spent a full year documenting the artist during his most iconic evolutionary stage, from folk to rock.
In 1967, Kramer published a book titled Bob Dylan, which features a collection of photographs that have since affected the way Dylan is seen by fans and critics alike. Kramer has also designed covers for some of Dylan’s most successful albums, Bringing It All Back Home (1965), Highway 61 Revisited (1965), and Biograph (1985). Rolling Stone magazine has referred to Kramer as “the photographer most closely associated with Bob Dylan.” This show is a curation of the deeply-rooted history shared between this photographer and his iconoclastic muse.
The timing of the show serendipitously coincides with Dylan receiving the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature, “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition,” according the Nobel Prize committee’s official announcement on Thursday.
Dylan is the first songwriter to win this award, though he has long been considered an influential and mutable icon, and has been on the committee’s short list for many years. Many critics have equated his songs to the ancient tradition lyrical poetry, because of his unique understanding of cadence, and his emphasis on the written word over musical composition.
“Bob Dylan: Photographs by Daniel Kramer” is exhibited in partnership with the Los Angeles-based Grammy Museum, which explores the history, technology, and creative process that surrounds Grammy Award-winning music and musicians.
The exhibit will be on display through December 20th. It is free and open to the public.