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THE OAKLAND TRIBUNE
Focus on Rock
New exhibit celebrates the work of rock-níroll photographer Pat Johnson
By AaronTassano
In the 1966 filmîBlow-upî by Michelangelo Antonioni, a flamboyant photographer
lures two models to his studio for a session. He photographs them so provocatively,
so passionately, the three inevitably end up on the floor, entangled in
a maze where naked bodies and studio equipment become.
In contrast, thereís San Mateo resident, Pat Johnson, a guy with a camera
from that fashion capital known as Cleveland.
Johnson, 47, moved to the Bay Area because it was a cool
scene. In 1974, he took his camera to a Santana concert at Winterland
and snapped Neil Schon, guitarist from a then-unknown band that opened
the show, playing its first concert ever.
Johnson liked the photo. The guitarist for Santana liked
it. Journeyís Schon really liked it.
Twenty five years later, the same blue-collar photographer
is showing his work in an exhibit that opened Friday at ArtRock
Gallery n San Francisco. The show features nearly 100 portraits of subjects
including David Bowie, James Brown, The rolling Stones, Tupac Shakur and
Grace Slick.
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