Gallery “Dots” on Dorćol and a creative afternoon after numerous business obligations. Lou Reed’s voice and “Perfect Day” in the background as an ideal sound backdrop for a tour of the exhibition “Heroes” by Dutch photographer Heisbert Hanekroff and our own Goranka Matić. A perfect day for a nostalgic trip to the seventies and eighties of the last century and meeting the heroes of many youths. David Bowie, Milan Mladenović, Mick Jaeger, Idols, Blondi, Marina Perazić, Pati Smith, Slađana Milošević watch us with (mostly) black and white photos… Pop and rock icons of a time immortalized in their zenith, on and off the stage. Larger than life artists, authentic stars of timeless brilliance.
However, this exhibition is not only an opportunity to recall an exciting era through recordings from concerts, tours or from the everyday life of musicians. This is also a good reason to reconsider the phenomenon of rock and roll heroism then and now. Not so long ago, rock and roll and photography were inextricably linked. Thanks to the mastery of rock photographers, musicians and performers on stage got that special aura that, along with other indispensable elements, turned them into charismatic heroes of certain eras. Thus, in the Netherlands in the 1970s, Hannecroft recorded moments from concerts and meetings with journalists, followed artists around studios and on tours, while Goranka Matić photographed musicians with whom she socialized and, practically, was part of the same scene. “Stylistically and technologically, their photographs reflect the spirit of the times,” explains Sara Maričić, an associate at the exhibition.
From the perspective of someone viewing reality in 2024 through a mobile phone screen, these photos are priceless. They are exclusive not only because on them we see Bowie, Tina Turner, Vlada Divljana, Slađana Milosevic and many others conquering the stage (and the hearts of the audience), but also because they show a time when only great and talented photographers could get close to rock stars and document what will become pop culture history.
Along with the greatest heroes of rock and roll, it seems, the Boomer generation grew up first and foremost, whose coming of age coincided with a revolution in many fields, caused by the appearance of the Beatles, the Stones, Dylan… These heroes in leather jackets and with guitars called for rebellion and defied the establishment. . Boomers, who grew up in the years of post-war prosperity and consumerism whose scale had not yet been imagined, needed heroes ready to change the world, however idealistic that may sound. Generation X respected the rock heroes of the sixties and seventies, as well as MTV stars, while the Millennials, especially generation Z, found their idols in the sphere of television and, above all, new media.
That’s why the “Heroes” exhibition was visited by different generations who experienced these impressive shots from their viewpoints. “We are surprised by the great interest”, says Sara Maričić and adds that even children and young people come in an organized manner to see the exhibition. We could not say that it is about nostalgia for what has been experienced or not experienced, but rather about the need to inhale a different visual code even for a moment and feel a time so different from Instagram reality.
And where is rock and roll today? It is present, but its influence is not what it was at the time of the creation of the exhibited photographs or even earlier, in the sixties, when rock icons were at the forefront of protests against wars, social inequality and injustice. Rockers raised key social issues on and off the stage and were role models not only for their musical quality, but also for their social engagement. The edge of rebellion was blunted when the former hippies and punks put on yuppie suits, and music became a serious business in a hyper-consumer society. It is now an industry, and there is no room for real rebels in it.
Contemporary instant culture also does not favor those whose works raise serious questions. Besides, everything has been seen before, the stories have long been told or recycled. “We can all be heroes for a day”, Bowie once sang and today, indeed, everyone is a potential hero on their own YouTube channel or social networks. It’s never been easier to record, distribute and promote your own music or have an internet fan base of millions, but is that enough to make someone a hero whose music will be timeless? While the rock legends of the second half of the twentieth century “come to life” as holograms, are the new rock heroes actually virtual megastars and vocaloids like Hatsune Miku?
In a world that is rapidly changing, it is necessary to pause sometimes and remember the time when rock and roll was at its peak and the heroes who represent indispensable determinants in rock encyclopedias and the culture of memory. Photos are there to remind us, and heroes – be they from mythology, from the movie screen or from rock and roll – are there to inspire, illuminate society and show the way.
