December 5, 2023 - February 3, 2024

ON DISPLAY AT THE PABST VISITOR CENTER & GALLERY AT THE ATLANTIC CENTER FOR THE ARTS

LOCATED AT 1414 ART CENTER AVENUE, NEW SMYRNA BEACH

The Southeast Museum of Photography is pleased to present Taking Note, an exhibition of photographic works, written reflections and ephemera by renowned photojournalist Colin Finlay. Taking Note features more than 30 photographs of musicians, including Grammy award-winning singer-songwriters and producers.

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*Christopher ‘Tricky’ Stewart and Terius ‘Dream’ Nash*, Village Studios, 2015

Highlights of the exhibit include portraits of recording artists Aimee Mann, Beck, Bonnie Raitt, Linda Perry and Nile Rodgers, as well as record producers Rick Rubin, The-Dream and Tricky Stewart. This elite cast was assembled as part of a documentary project started by George Martin, the legendary producer of The Beatles. Titled Soundbreaking: Stories from the Cutting Edge of Recorded Music, it became an eight-part, in-depth look at the evolving art of music recording. For Finlay, photographing the artists was the opportunity of a lifetime.

“I was asked to join their creative juggernaut from the sidelines, and there I would create the images of my deeply venerated luminaries.”

Often having to wait until the end of lengthy studio sessions, he absorbed the sights and sounds, reflecting on his own musical journey, which began as a young man performing as lead singer and rhythm guitarist in a garage cover band.

about the artist

Now decades into a storied career – and a composer in his own right – Finlay acknowledges a moment of revelation occurred when this project allowed him the freedom “to create photographs of something I loved…that spoke to me on the deepest level of my being.” A renewed passion to explore these interweaving threads took hold, and he approached his subjects with admiration and purpose.

*Rick Rubin*, The Band’s Touring Bus, Shangri-La Studio, Malibu, CA 2014

“It was a powerful moment for me because as soon as he sat down, I knew we had the image. Before I even lifted the camera, it was over. We made a handful of photographs in the driver’s seat, a few others from the front of the bus, and then it was time for Rick’s quick exit. At times, it is difficult to see these brief interactions end, because I know they will never happen again. Less was always more, is something I think Rick would say, and I can live by that. ”

— Colin Finlay

*Mike Campbell*, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Clubhouse, 2014

*Linda Perry*, Linda Perry Studios, Los Angeles, CA 2016

The resulting photographs capture remarkable moments: an intimate view of Linda Perry composing music at home; Rick Rubin framed within the front seat of The Band’s old VW tour bus; Mike Campbell hanging around The Clubhouse, the exclusive space in which Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers recorded and rehearsed; Beck writing notes in the margins of his lyrics; and Bonnie Raitt’s profile softly illuminated against the dark, wood-paneled studio at Grandmaster Recorders.

*Bonnie Raitt*, Grandmaster Recordings, CA, 2014

STRIKING A CHORD

Taking Note also explores Finlay’s commercial portraiture and campaign work, in which he deftly places his subjects against the backdrop of Los Angeles’ city streets, historic buildings and coastlines. His portraits represent a departure from the cultivated images familiar to the public – ones in which every aspect of brand perception has been accounted for by marketing campaigns that effectively reduce musicians to products. Far from choreographed, Finlay’s lyrical images were captured in the immediate moment and in a variety of locations, from the recording studio to the streets.

Almost Honest, Villa Carlotta, Hollywood, CA, 2011

Finlay’s portraits are raw and unfiltered – allowing the viewer a glimpse into an authentic moment. Yet these aren’t straight documentary photographs either. Taken in a manner similar to a visual form of ‘call and response,’ a compositional technique that functions like a conversation in music, these portraits are the result of a collaborative process. Regarding artists like Almost Honest, Brock Monroe, Fantastic Negrito, Franki Banali and T.Ray, Finlay said: “We spent long hours creating the image of themselves that they wanted to share with their audience. They were building or re-directing careers, and together we forged a new aesthetic.”

“Fantastic Negrito is Prince, James Brown and Stevie Wonder all rolled into one... Then add a bit of Sly Stone, and you have an idea of the man. I’d spent a few years working on a story in South Central Los Angeles, so I was very familiar with some of the locations that we rolled through. But when he showed up in that suit, his racoon hat, a walking cane and deep black mascara under his eyes, I knew it was over before we even started. Game on, ignite the explosives and stand back. He broke through the lens, as he has broken through life. The image was made below the overpass of the 105 and 110 freeway interchange. A crossroads of sorts, that separated him from his past, and lit the way to a new future which he alone would control.”

— Colin Finlay

Amp Live of Zion-I, Butterfly Lounge, 2004

Andy Caldwell, The Fig Tree, Los Angeles, CA, 2004

Scarlett Etienne, San Francisco, CA, 2004

For the commissioned portraits of musicians and DJs, he took an unconventional approach – no crew, no entourage – just his camera, his subjects and an ever-changing landscape. His photograph of Aero in Tommy Lee’s backyard and Benji Mophono peering through the window of his favorite record shop makes both artists seem relatable. From Amp Live and Andy Caldwell performing inside clubs to Zion-I and Scarlett Etienne starkly positioned within industrial scenes, Finlay knows how to mix edgy appeal with mystique while still cultivating a sense of accessibility, connecting them all to the local scene.

“At the center of all these photographs resides a man who is absolutely lost in his pursuit of passion. Truth be told, I would have paid all of them for their time, patience and generosity towards me.”

— Colin Finlay