Glimpse Austin's Musical Past Through the Lens of Susan Antone

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) News

For immediate release:

March 4, 2009

Susan Antone's photo of Albert Collins, 1990 Glimpses of Austin’s musical past shown through the lens of Susan Antone’s camera at Austin airport

AUSTIN, TEXAS – The passion, excitement and joy of the Blues, spanning over three decades of live Austin music, is revealed in the dramatic photographic essay now on display at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Titled " Rhythm", the photo prints captured by the camera of Susan Antone show off Stevie Ray Vaughn, Clifton Chenier, Pinetop Perkins and many other musicians who contributed to the Austin music scene. The exhibit presents a candid legacy of the memorable performances that have filled the Austin nights with unforgettable music and rhythm.

As the sister to nightclub owner Clifford Antone (1949 – 2006), Susan had the great advantage to use her camera as an instrument for recording scenes on and off the stage. In a 1983 stop action photograph, trombonist Porky Cohen of Room Full of Blues performs intensely, his brow and instrument glistening. With Cohen’s trombone fully extended up to the camera’s lens, the musician and instrument appear to be one. In a more relaxed moment, Susan caught the backstage camaraderie of Hubert Sumlin and Stevie Ray Vaughn exchanging greetings and handshakes during a break from the music.

To preserve the legacy, Antone donated her collection to the Dolph Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin for permanent archive of her photographs and negatives, many of which have never been reproduced.

Rhythm is on display through May 10, 2009 in the Airside West Gallery showcase located on the concourse behind BookPeople and in the area of the airport past security checkpoints accessible to ticketed passengers only, currently an audience of approximately 20,000 passengers a day. As an extra bonus, six large posters featuring many of the selected images from the exhibit can be seen on the balcony columns overlooking bag claim on the public side of the ticketing concourse.

Other exhibits on display at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
In Search of Beauty - The avant-garde and pioneering photographic creations of twentieth century photographer Fritz Henle (1909-1998) are on large posters throughout the concourse with other memorabilia from the archives of the Harry Ransom Center. The exhibit, coinciding with the centennial celebration of Henle’s birth, provides an overview of his diverse bibliography of photographic works as well as samples of his photography. Exhibit is on display in the airport pylon showcases and Airside East Gallery through April 7, 2009.

Source: City of Austin