Kevin Cummings (Moz / Smiths Photographer) to talk at Urmston Library

Dave2006

Well-Known Member
One for the (South) Manchester contingent me-thinks
http://www.trafford.gov.uk/leisureandculture/libraries/whatson/

As part of Wordfest - Trafford Council's celebration of all things wordy - Kevin Cummins will talk about his career and work, including portraits of famous rock stars.

No idea if any Smiths / Moz photos will be on display, but it's a good chance to hear some stories and get some stuff signed :thumb:

Morrissey%20084_medium.jpg

The%20Smiths103_medium.jpg

Morrissey%20086_medium.jpg

The%20Smiths113_medium.jpg

Johnny%20Marr081_medium.jpg


Dave
 
A bit more digging shows Morrissey on the front cover of the Wordfest brochure... The event is free but it says booking is essential.
Manchester-born Kevin Cummins is one
of the world’s leading photographers.
He has had a 25 year association with the
NME and contributed to many major
publications such as Vogue, City Life, The
Guardian and the Big Issue. Hear him talk
about his career and work including iconic
portraits of rock musicians such as Joy
Division, The Smiths, Oasis and David
Bowie which have graced magazine
covers the world over.

Kevin Cummins was
born in Manchester
in 1953 and has
lived in London
since 1987 although
retains strong links
with the North West.
After studying
photography in
Salford, Kevin
embarked on a
career that saw him become one of the
premier documentary photographers of the
era. He was instrumental in establishing
Manchester's City Life magazine and
during his 10 years as chief photographer
with New Musical Express, his awardwinning
pictures contributed to the rise of
the Madchester and Cool Britannia scenes.
He continues to contribute to publications
worldwide and shoots regularly for The
National Theatre in London.

I'll be calling the library in the morning.
0161 912 2727
[email protected]

Dave
 
I wonder if Morrissey knows that that prick has the date of the Munich Air Disaster as his pin number? Don't think he'd be overly impressed.

Good photgrapher, but an absolute c*** of a man.
 
Did anyone else go to this talk?

I thought Kevin was on top form, even if Trafford libraries lacked a little in the technology dept - his Apple lap top could be used with the projector, so we had a librarian using her laptop with some of Kevin's photos on a pen drive, and the PA system didn't work, so Kevin had to shout to be heard.

He only showed one Morrissey photo and one of Johnny Marr
Morrissey%20087_medium.jpg
Johnny%20Marr081_medium.jpg


But he had some good anecdotes -
  • Morrissey likes to get his money's worth out of a photographer, so if Morrissey books Kevin for a day's shooting he is expected to get there before dawn and carry on till after dusk :) He said Morrissey was a good subject as he had very clear ideas (lots of them) of how he wanted to be portrayed (some good, some bad) but other bands just turned up and expect to be snapped.
  • There was a period (1990/91?) when Kevin was working with both Morrissey and Electronic; Morrissey would ask Kevin how 'Bernard Allbran' was getting on rather than ask how Johnny was. Kevin also thought that Morrissey must have known Electronic's diary as he would get calls from M insisting they met on days when he was supposed to be with Electronic.

I queued up and got my copy of 'The Smiths and Beyond' signed - but not on the inside page, I asked him to sign the 'Penis Mightier Than The Sword' page, he said he didn't normally sign photos, thought for a moment, decided where to write and wrote this:
IMG00636-20110702-1046.jpg


I have a dilemma now - do I keep the book as it is, or cut this page out and frame it?

Dave
 
Did anyone else go to this talk?

I thought Kevin was on top form, even if Trafford libraries lacked a little in the technology dept - his Apple lap top could be used with the projector, so we had a librarian using her laptop with some of Kevin's photos on a pen drive, and the PA system didn't work, so Kevin had to shout to be heard.

He only showed one Morrissey photo and one of Johnny Marr
Morrissey%20087_medium.jpg
Johnny%20Marr081_medium.jpg


But he had some good anecdotes -
  • Morrissey likes to get his money's worth out of a photographer, so if Morrissey books Kevin for a day's shooting he is expected to get there before dawn and carry on till after dusk :) He said Morrissey was a good subject as he had very clear ideas (lots of them) of how he wanted to be portrayed (some good, some bad) but other bands just turned up and expect to be snapped.
  • There was a period (1990/91?) when Kevin was working with both Morrissey and Electronic; Morrissey would ask Kevin how 'Bernard Allbran' was getting on rather than ask how Johnny was. Kevin also thought that Morrissey must have known Electronic's diary as he would get calls from M insisting they met on days when he was supposed to be with Electronic.

I queued up and got my copy of 'The Smiths and Beyond' signed - but not on the inside page, I asked him to sign the 'Penis Mightier Than The Sword' page, he said he didn't normally sign photos, thought for a moment, decided where to write and wrote this:
IMG00636-20110702-1046.jpg


I have a dilemma now - do I keep the book as it is, or cut this page out and frame it?

Dave

Awww, thank you very much for your lovely report.

You should buy another copy then you don't have a dilemma. :p
 
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