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Art Vinyl today launches a one-off exhibition that includes previously unseen photography of The Beatles in a unique window installation at The Hari, Belgravia London. The exhibition that runs until 2nd April showcases the work of renowned pop culture photographer, Tommy Hanley and is a prelude to the launch of his limited edition book ‘With a Little Help from My Lens’ that documents his time spent with the Fab Four.
Renowned for celebrating record cover art and design, Art Vinyl has been exclusively commissioned to present this remarkable collection of Tommy Hanley’s photographic work, that features in the forthcoming book, with the opening of the first exhibition of its kind.
The candid photos of the world’s best known band and a selection of stars from the time are taken by Tommy Hanley over the course of his thirty-year friendship with John, Paul, George and Ringo.
Yoko Ono Lennon has also kindly granted permission to include a number of Tommy’s iconic images of John Lennon from her private collection, notably the famous ‘Imagine’ images in 1971 which also feature in the book.
Tommy Hanley was a London born photographer who from an early age, honed his craft on iconic music stars of the 1960s and 1970s. Jazz greats, such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, through to The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Marc Bolan and Tina Turner were all captured by Tommy’s lens.
Hanley’s pictures capture these music legends with candid photos from his archive that reflect his close relationship with the stars of the day – none more so than those he took of The Beatles from their early humble beginnings to the tragic death of John Lennon, Tommy was very much part of their inner circle.
The Art Vinyl window installation at The Hari sees 48 especially selected Beatles and Beatles related exclusive photographs that showcase and include images produced from Hanley’s original negatives.
Notably, Jimmy Nichol who temporarily replaced Ringo Starr, whilst he was in Hospital, pictured with only Bongos to drum, John and Yoko at Tittenhurst Park after the Beatles split up and the first image of the three remaining Beatles following the tragic death of John Lennon.
The publication of ‘With a Little Help from My Lens’ is Tommy’s personal account of the time he spent with the Beatles. Written in 2009 and brought to life by Tommy’s son Tony Hanley, the 1,000 limited edition copies include over 100 of Tommy’s images from the height of the Group’s early fame in the early 60s to fascinating intimate images shot in the Apple Offices at the end of their career together.
Tommy’s son Tony Hanley comments, “My late father, Tommy, originally penned this book well over 14 years ago. Sadly, his health slowly deteriorated to the point that he could no longer continue, so I made a promise to bring it to life one day. It is indeed a great moment to be able to share, just a small selection of his images which, using today’s digital technology, have been brought back to life and appear in all their glory in the book, as well as his fascinating and personal account of the friendship he enjoyed with The Beatles. Tommy’s images are clearly not ‘run of the mill’ and the selection of his work on display for the Art Vinyl exhibition, is a proud moment and a chance for everyone to enjoy his work featuring The Fab Four as well as many of the personalities that were also part of the 1960s scene.”
Founder of Art Vinyl Andrew Heeps says, “This is an amazing opportunity for us, diversifying from our usual record cover art exhibitions, to deliver our first ever photography installation – and what a talent we’ve had the chance to work with. Now looking at the multiple photographic artworks on each side of our giant installation, you can almost hear the soundtrack in one’s head, the immediate connection these familiar faces have made on our collective music history.”
From Andrew Coney, General Manager at The Hari, “We are thrilled to exhibit such a fantastic collection of historical images at The Hari. I have long been a fan of The Beatles and I am so excited to be able to showcase Tommy’s work in our hotel. A testament to his craft and time, Tommy’s archive of images reflect his close relationship with the stars of the 1960’s and 1970’s, as he was very much part of their inner circle.”
Mark Lewisohn, Beatles Historian and author of ‘Tune In’ explains in the book’s Foreword “Hanley was another Londoner who had the Beatles confidence, as well as a first rate feel for releasing the shutter. Often the only photographer in the room, he enjoyed fine exclusives.”
Art Vinyl has curated annual exhibitions to celebrate the best in record cover design for the past 16 years.
Memory Box UK is the company behind Art Vinyl and in 2008 for three years curated the first ever UK gallery solely dedicated to record cover design, the Art Vinyl Gallery on East London’s Broadway Market.
Memory Box is now responsible for organising the annual Best Art Vinyl poll that brings together numerous record cover exhibitions simultaneously showcasing the best in record cover design of the year. Previous years’ exhibitions have toured the UK in multiple public exhibitions and globally in Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Sweden.
Memory Box is the creator of the world’s first ever Flip Frame, a unique display frame designed specifically to celebrate record sleeves.
The first Flip Frame ‘Play & Display’ now has over half a million customers that are passionate about art and music. With a host of music and design clients, Memory Box under the ‘Art Vinyl’ banner is well qualified to reach out to the people that are passionate about art and design in music.
The Hari hotel opened its doors in August 2016. The hotel is the vision of Dr. Aron Harilela, Chairman and CEO of Harilela Hotels Ltd, and the first hotel to open under the ‘The Hari’ brand. A second hotel opened in December 2020 in Hong Kong.
The Harilela Group was established in 1959 and is still wholly owned by the Harilela family. The Harilela Group is the parent company of Harilela Hotels which owns 15 properties across Hong Kong, China, the Far East, Europe, and the US. https://www.thehari.com/
Tommy Hanley was one of the great music photographers of our time. During the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80’s, Tommy captured some of the most unforgettable images of the biggest names in pop, rock and jazz.
Many years in the making, ‘With A Little Help From My Lens’ is the long-awaited story of Tommy’s remarkable close relationship with the world’s most famous band, The Beatles.The book chronicles his time with the ‘Fab Four’, from when he first met and photographed them in 1963, through to the end of the decade when Tommy found himself at the epi-centre of the eccentricity that was the Apple empire. Finally, he shares his experiences in the 1980’s when he was appointed as an archivist by Apple Corps to assist in tracking down photographs and memorabilia for the Anthology project.
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