MICK ROCK

Mick Rock is often referred to as ‘The Man Who Shot the Seventies’, for his iconic images of Syd Barrett, David Bowie, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Queen, the Sex Pistols, The Ramones, Blondie, Rocky Horror Picture Show, etc. But he never shopped shooting. His recent subjects include Snoop Dogg, Father John Misty, Lenny Kravitz , The Black Keys, Alicia Keys, Michael Buble, Daft Punk, Pharrell, Flaming Lips, Rufus Wainwright, Kings of Leon, Queens of The Stone Age.

London born, he has resided in New York for the past 35 years and has shot over 100 album covers. Mick was instrumental in creating many key rock ‘n’ roll images, such as album covers for Syd Barrett’s Madcap Laughs, David Bowie’s Space Oddity, Lou Reed’s Transformer and Coney Island Baby, Iggy and The Stooges’ Raw Power, Queen’s Queen II (recreated for their classic music video Bohemian Rhapsody) and Sheer Heart Attack, The Ramones End of the Century and Joan Jett’s I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll, among many others.

He was the chief photographer on the films The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Shortbus. He recently shot special stills for the new TV version of Rocky Horror. He also produced and directed the seminal music videos for Bowie: John, I’m Only Dancing, Jean Genie, Space Oddity, and Life On Mars. He recently did a new edit of his classic Life On Mars video for Parlophone Records, which was released in November 2016 as part of the promotion for Bowie-Legacy, a collection of Bowie’s most beloved singles.

In recent years he has published a series of books, mostly based on his classic images: A Photographic Record 1969-1980 (foreword by Lou Reed, Century 22 Books, 1995), Glam: An Eyewitness Account (foreword by David Bowie, Omnibus Books, 2006), Psychedelic Renegades / Syd Barrett (Genesis Publications, 2002), Moonage Daydream / Ziggy Stardust (with David Bowie, Genesis Publications, 2002), Rock ‘n’ Roll Eye (Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, 2003), Killer Queen (with Brian May and Roger Taylor, Genesis Publications, 2003), Picture This / Debbie Harry & Blondie (foreword by Debbie Harry, Omnibus Books, 2004), Raw Power / Iggy & The Stooges (foreword by Iggy Pop, Omnibus Books, 2005), Rocky Horror (foreword by Richard O’Brien, Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, 2006), Classic Queen (Sterling Press, 2007), Tamashii: Mick Rock Meets Kanzaburo (Kabuki Theatre Photos, Hachette Fujingaho, Japan, 2007), Psychedelic Renegades (Gingko Press, 2007), EXPOSED (Hardcover, Chronicle Books, 2010), Transformer (with Lou Reed, Genesis Publications 2013), EXPOSED (softcover, Palazzo Editions, 2014).

His latest publication The Rise of David Bowie 1972-1973 (with David Bowie, Taschen Books, 2015), a spectacular limited edition co-signed with Bowie, sold out just before David’s death. It was Taschen’s fastest -ever selling limited edition publication. Mick has recently been promoting the trade edition.

Mick is featured in an episode of the Red Bull Films series ‘Visions of Greatness’, to be initially broadcast Spring 2017. He also had an acclaimed Ovation Cable TV series this year, ‘On The Record With Mick Rock’. The second series will begin in June 2017.

A documentary about his career, produced by Vice Films and Straight Up Films, called ‘SHOT!’, was launched at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2016 and has also been screened in the London, Sao Paolo, Stockholm, IDFA Amsterdam, Montreal Festivals. Its distributor Magnolia Pictures intend to release it theatrically in Spring 2017.

A classic quote from Mick in the ‘London Times’, who dubbed him ‘the music world’s top snapper’: “I’ve never felt like a voyeur, although I’ve certainly done plenty of looking! I work from the inside out. Like a cook I gather all the ingredients and keep mixing and stirring and tasting until the kind of effluvia starts to rise, then I’m off to the races. It’s an addictive kind of a feeling that I need a regular shot of otherwise I don’t feel right…”