We are just weeks away from the opening of the Oasis photography exhibition at the London H club. 25 years since the release of Oasis’ first album DEFINITELY, MAYBE. MASTERPLAN25 marks this occasion with this photography exhibition with Michael Spencer Jones ; Iconic & Unseen Photographs of OASIS.
Spencer Jones travelled with Oasis during many of their iconic tours. He had intimate access to those moments that many Oasis fans would be curious to see. The exhibition includes never before seen footage, memorabilia and documentation from this iconic band.
Described as a ‘finely nuanced artist’ and ‘visual risk taker’ Michael Spencer Jones is a celebrated photographer whose era-defining body of work has taken its place amongst the most iconic imagery in British rock history and has become as memorable as the music it represents.
It was Michael Spencer Jones that shot the memorable cover to Oasis’ 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe, later submerging a Rolls Royce in a swimming Pool for Oasis’ 1997 album Be Here Now. He would then go on to create the artwork that came to define Oasis.
This exhibition will showcase artwork from three of Oasis’ earliest and most influential albums; Definitely Maybe (1994), What’s The Story (1995) and Be Here Now (1997), with scenes re-created giving visitors the chance to create iconic poses.
The exhibition delves beneath the famous covers, giving visitors a look behind-the-scenes and on to the set of all the shoots for the legendary Oasis album and single covers.
Visitors will be able to view original artwork from a selection of Oasis’ singles including Supersonic (1994), Live Forever (1994), Cigarettes & Alcohol (1994), Whatever (1994), Some Might Say (1995), Roll With It (1995), Wonderwall (1995) and Don’t Look Back In Anger (1995).
What is unique to this exhibition is Spencer Jones’ own commentary on the imagery that is displayed, having an array of stories that provide an insight into life with the band.
Michael Spencer Jones said of the exhibition:
“I am delighted to be exhibiting my work with Oasis at h Club London, especially the shots and artefacts fans will never have seen before. Seen from the digital matrix in which we now live, Oasis were the last gasp of air in the analogue age; the last great rock’n’roll band before Zuckerberg, before iPhones and before the internet began to shape and control our lives. I hope this exhibition gives fans a chance to pause and reflect and look back upon a time when the face and image of Britain was being revolutionised from below.”
Featuring everything from informal, off-guard moments to frame-stealing play-acting; and from fully-polished alternative covers to original, marked-up contact sheets (some of which have never been exhibited before) – all images will be accompanied by interviews and anecdotes from Spencer Jones and the band.
Shots will include behind the scenes recording sessions at Rockfield Studios, unseen photography of Oasis on tour and previously unseen outtakes from their famous covers.
A devoted collector, Spencer Jones had the opportunity and wherewithal to hold on to the various letters, scraps of paper and props from his myriad shoots with the band.
Michael Berg, CMO h Club said:
“We are absolutely thrilled to be exhibiting Michael Spencer Jones’ brilliant work, which shaped Oasis’ image. It’s difficult to imagine ‘Definitely Maybe’ without seeing a spinning globe in a living room; ‘Be Here Now’ without a Rolls Royce in a swimming pool; or ‘Wonderwall’ without a girl in a picture frame – without Michael, Oasis may have been an entirely different band.”
Exhibiting these memorabilia together for the first time in the UK, these provide a fascinating insight into the band. Items include props from the original shoots, original handwritten song lyrics and correspondence with the fans, as well as the original cameras that were used to shoot the cover art for Definitely Maybe, (What’s The Story) Morning Glory and Be Here Now?
Masterplan25 -Michael Spencer Jones – Oasis Exhibition
Throughout the run of the exhibition exclusive and signed limited edition artworks from all the famous covers will be able to buy, including a 3D image of Definitely Maybe exhibited for the very first time.
Masterplan 25 runs from Friday 22nd November 2019 – Sunday 12th January 2020 at h Club London.
Venue: h Club Gallery, 24 Endell Street, London, WC2H 9HQ
Price: Free of charge & non ticketed
