Cynthia Connolly (born 1964) is an American photographer, curator, graphic designer, and artist.
Career
Connolly graduated from
Corcoran College of Art and Design
The Corcoran School of the Arts and Design (known as the Corcoran School or CSAD) is the professional art school of the George Washington University, in Washington, DC.Peggy McGloneUniversity names first director of Corcoran School of the Arts and ...
.
She worked for
Dischord Records
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idles. ...
and d.c. space in Washington, DC. In 1988, she published ''Banned in DC: Photos and Anecdotes From the DC Punk Underground (79–85)'' through her
small press Sun Dog Propaganda.
The book was compiled with
Sharon Cheslow and Leslie Clague. ''Banned in DC'' documented the early
hardcore punk
Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...
scene in
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, including bands like
Bad Brains
Bad Brains are an American rock band formed in Washington, D.C. in 1976. Originally a jazz fusion band under the name Mind Power, they are widely regarded as pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members have objected to the use of this t ...
and
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitar ...
.
One of Connolly's most well-known works is the album art for ''
Out of Step'', the 1983 LP by hardcore punk band
Minor Threat
Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitar ...
.
The cover art shows a black crayon-drawn sheep, with his eyes wide open, leaping away from a group of white water-colored sheep. The black sheep has become a symbol for Dischord Records and the label's punk movement; it is widely copied as tattoo art. In a 2015 interview with music blog ''Dangerous Minds'', Connolly said about the sketch:
Minor Threat had asked me to make a drawing for the ''Out of Step'' cover. Ian Mackaye and I discussed something to do with a black sheep. The obvious idea was a black sheep that was leaping away from all the white sheep. The black sheep symbolized all of us, the kids that were doing something different, going against the grain of what was going on at the time. I thought of us as young and energetic. I was just 19 when I drew the sheep, I think. ''I was young and energetic!'' It was 1983.
Since the mid-1990s, Connolly has exhibited her
photography
Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employe ...
of musicians, landscapes, and found objects. She is a key exemplar of what has come to be known as the “punk aesthetic,” making art from the same
D.I.Y. "do it yourself" principles that characterized the punk rock music movement of the late 1970s and 1980s. In addition to traditional art galleries, Connolly has showcased her work in ''ad hoc'' art spaces, such as warehouses, bars, vacant buildings, squats and
people's homes. She letterpresses her own promotional posters and postcards.
In 2002, she participated in the Rural Studio Program of
Auburn University in Newbern,
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
.
There, she won a
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
grant with the Alabama State Council on the Arts
to build a vegetable stand utilizing an art medium called "hogwire" by Alabama folk artist,
Butch Anthony, as gates for the stand, and incorporating art by other Alabama artists in the project. She published photographs from her Alabama residency in the book ''The Rural Studio Bonus Album.'' Connolly's Alabama photo collection has been shown in four main solo exhibitions as well as group gallery shows, including Transformer Gallery, Auburn University's Rural Studio, SUNY Purchase, amongst others.
Her photographic series of "Ice Machines", and her postcards, books and the cover artwork for Minor Threat's "Out of Step" EP were featured in an art exhibition Beautiful Losers, reviewed in Art in America. '' Connolly collaborated with
Lee Ranaldo
Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ...
of
Sonic Youth on the 2004 book ''Lengths & Breaths,'' with her photography illustrating Ranaldo's text''.''
The work exhibited at Civilian Art projects in 2012 made its way to the collection of the J Paul Getty Museum in her home town of Los Angeles, California.
Cynthia Connolly continues to exhibit her photography and create ephemeral objects using her letterpress and photographs. She is the Special Projects Curator for
Arlington County, Virginia
Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county ...
. Her work with Arlington County and the Arlington Art Truck earned a grant from the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
in 2017 and was nominated for the Robert E. Gard Award from
Americans for the Arts
Americans for the Arts is a nonprofit organization whose primary focus is advancing the arts in the United States. With offices in Washington, D.C., and New York City, with more than 50 years of service. Americans for the Arts is dedicated to repr ...
in 2019.
Publications
Books
*
Banned in DC: Photos and Anecdotes from the DC Punk Underground (79-85)'' By Cynthia Connolly, Leslie Clague, and
Sharon Cheslow. Sun Dog Propaganda, 1988-2015.
*
East to West: Trucks Driving'' By Cynthia Connolly. Sun Dog Propaganda, 1999.
*
'. Text by
Lee Ranaldo
Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ...
, Photography by Cynthia Connolly. Water Row Press, 2004.
*
Big Lots'. By Cynthia Connolly. Deadbeat Club, 2015.
*
'' Edited by Cynthia Connolly. Self-published, 2020.
Collections
Connolly's photographs, books, and ephemeral art are archived in museums and libraries internationally.
Collections list
*
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, California
*
The National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington, DC
*
Corcoran
Corcoran is an Irish surname, the original Irish language form being meaning 'descendant of Corcrán'. The name itself is derived from meaning 'purple'.
History
The name Corcoran is an anglicisation of the names of two Gaelic clans. The f ...
Legacy Collection: The Katzen Museum, Washington, DC
*
Smithsonian Museum of American History, Washington, DC
*
DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
The D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH) is an agency of the District of Columbia government. As of October 2022, the Interim Executive Director is David Markey. CAH was created as an outgrowth of the U.S. Congress Act that established ...
, Washington, DC
*Luther Brady Collection,
George Washington University
The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress, GWU is the largest Higher educat ...
, Washington, DC
*
University of Colorado Boulder
The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado sy ...
, Boulder, Colorado
*
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...
Art Collection, London, England
*
Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library
The Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library () is the rare book library and literary archive of the Yale University Library in New Haven, Connecticut. It is one of the largest buildings in the world dedicated to rare books and manuscripts. Es ...
,
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
, New Haven, Connecticut
*Archive of Documentary Arts,
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
*DC Punk Archive (Washingtonia/Special Collections),
DC Public Library, Washington, DC
*Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library,
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
, College Park, Maryland
*
Michigan State University Libraries, East Lansing, Michigan
*Arlington Public Library, Arlington, Virginia
References
External links
Cynthia Connolly - Official Website*
ttps://pitchfork.com/thepitch/778-banned-in-dc-is-back-in-print-an-interview-with-cynthia-connolly/ Interview with Cynthia Connolly about Banned in DC, via Pitchforkbr>
Audio recording of Banned in DC slideshow by Connolly and panel discussion at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, DC, December 13, 2018
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connolly, Cynthia
1964 births
Living people
American photographers
George Washington University Corcoran School alumni
Auburn University people
American women photographers
Artists from Los Angeles
Artists from Washington, D.C.
American women curators
American curators