Haight Street Art Center to Open Between the Dark and Light: Grateful Dead 1965-1995 Photography + Poster Art Exhibition Curated by Jay Blakesberg
SAN FRANCISCO (PRWEB) June 30, 2023 -- The Haight Street Art Center (215 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94102, USA) is proud to present “Between the Dark and Light: Grateful Dead 1965-1995,” which will run from July 12 through September 3, coinciding with the final three Dead & Company concerts, to be held at Oracle Park on July 14, 15, and 16.
Curated by acclaimed rock photographer Jay Blakesberg, with exhibition text by Grateful Dead historian Blair Jackson, “Between the Dark and Light” follows the Grateful Dead from the halcyon days of the Haight-Ashbury through the untimely death of their lead guitarist, Jerry Garcia, in 1995.
Along the way, Blakesberg and Jackson take viewers to free concerts in Golden Gate Park, New Year’s Eve shows around the Bay Area, the October 1974 Winterland shows that were filmed for what would become The Grateful Dead Movie, the band’s legendary performances in Europe and Egypt, and their historic runs in 1980 at the Warfield in San Francisco and Radio City Music Hall in New York City, to name just a few. Rounding out the exhibition are a number of key rock posters from the Haight Street Art Center’s collection that show the evolving visual style of poster art that defined the three-decade career of the Grateful Dead, and still inspire poster artists to this day.
“We are thrilled to collaborate with Jay to host this extraordinary collection of photographs that capture the musical and cultural journey through the Grateful Dead’s career,” said Kelly Harris, the Haight Street Art Center’s Executive Director. “When combined with posters from the Art Center’s permanent collection, the exhibition poignantly tells the story of a Bay Area treasure that came of age during the golden age of San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury.”
To tell these stories, Blakesberg dug deep into the Retro Photo Archive, curating almost 100 rarely seen images of the band alongside dozens of iconic images by visual chroniclers of the Grateful Dead, including Adrian Boot, Alvan Meyerowitz, Andy Leonard, Baron Wolman, Bob Minkin, Dave Seabury, Ed Perlstein, Elizabeth Sunflower, Greg Gaar, Herb Greene, Jonathan David Sabin, Mark Norwine, Mary Ann Mayer, Michael Dobo, Patti Healy, Ron Rakow, Rosie McGee, Snooky Flowers, Steve Schneider, and Susana Millman, as well as Blakesberg's own work.
"The Grateful Dead has always allowed fans to bring cameras into their concerts," Blakesberg says, "which has left us Dead Heads with a vast photographic history of this band. Some of us started our careers photographing the Grateful Dead, myself included. The photographs on display show the band on and off stage, and create a wonderful historical look at the band’s 30-year career.”
“What a great trip it is to see the Dead's incredible journey told through so many rare or never published photographs, as well as iconic images by some of the best photographers who documented the Grateful Dead experience,” Jackson says. “From the group's humble beginnings to its shows in football stadiums packed with dancing Dead Heads, the contours of the Grateful Dead story really come alive in new and exciting ways on the walls of the Haight Street Art Center.”
A very special exhibition preview and opening reception will take place on the evening of Tuesday, July 11 from 5-9pm. Opening Night will feature the sounds of Scott Guberman, a Bay Area keyboardist with a deep passion for the music of the Grateful Dead. The Art Center will host a live screen-printing demo and poster giveaway, and all Opening Night attendees will go home with a sponsor goodie bag. Click here to purchase tickets.
A limited-edition, commemorative Grateful Dead-themed exhibition poster and handbill designed by Caitlin Mattisson and silkscreened in Haight Street’s studio will be available for purchase.
The Haight Street Art Center serves San Francisco’s thriving poster art and artist communities with education and cultural development programs, and exhibitions. Drawing upon music, art, social and political counterculture history, we provide a space that bridges communities through social activism and artistic expression.
The exhibition is made possible in part by the generous Haight Street Art Center sponsors Alex B, the Haight Street Voice, Relix Magazine, Anchor Steam, Grateful Guitars, and, Humboldt Family Farms featuring Full Moon Farms.
Tickets Available at: https://givebutter.com/GD2023
Haight Street Art Center
215 Haight Street, at the corner of Laguna Street.
San Francisco, CA. 94102
Open weekly on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 12-6 pm.
Its outdoor Garden Gallery is open daily (7 am – 9 pm).
Admission is always free.
For more information about the Haight Street Art Center, its exhibitions, events, and programs, please visit http://www.haightstreetart.org
Tags #haightstreetartcenter #hsac #gratefuldead #thedead #jayblakesberg
For more information
Jeff Idelson Board of Directors, Haight Street Art Center
(607) 287-8229 (c)
mailto:[email protected] [[email protected] __title__ null]
For Press Information on Jay Blakesberg
Jennifer Gross
Evolutionary Media Group
323-646-8412
mailto:[email protected] [[email protected] __title__ null]
- Press images available upon request *
Jennifer Gross, Evolutionary Media Group, http://Evolutionary Media Group, 1 3236468412, [email protected]
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