Sunny Bak is an American photographer. She shot the gatefold image of the

Beastie Boys Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...

on the '' Licensed to Ill'' album, and the infamous Lesbian cover for '' Newsweek'' in June 1993, which still ranks among their top ten selling issues.

Early life

Sunny Bak was born in Manhattan to Chinese-Indonesian and Korean parents.

Photography career

1970s

Sunny Bak began shooting pictures in 1972 at Woodside Junior High School in Queens,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

for her school paper at the age of twelve. Her first subjects for the paper included The Supremes and the Broadway show casts of ''

1776 Events January–February * January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces. * January 1 ...

'' and ''

Two Gentlemen of Verona ''The Two Gentlemen of Verona'' is a Shakespearean comedy, comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1589 and 1593. It is considered by some to be Shakespeare's first play, and is often seen as showing his first tent ...

''. The school paper rejected her interview with

Carly Simon Carly Elisabeth Simon (born June 25, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, memoirist, and children's author. She rose to fame in the 1970s with a string of hit records; her 13 Top 40 U.S. hits include "Anticipation" (No. 13), " The Right Thin ...

on the grounds that Simon was an unknown at the time. Bak sold the interview to ''Aktuil'', an Indonesian rock magazine, for $100—her first sale. Sunny Bak opened her first studio in 1976 on Broadway and 18th Street in Manhattan while attending

City-As-School City-As-School (CAS) is a public high school located at 16 Clarkson Street between Hudson Street and Seventh Avenue South in the West Village of Manhattan, New York City which was established in 1972. It is one of America's oldest alternative ...

. The studio was located at 876 Broadway which was owned at the time by photographer William Biggart, the only journalist to die from the 9/11 attacks. At the same time, Sunny Bak was studying photography under Philippe Halsman at The New School for Social Research in Manhattan.

1980s

In the 1980s Sunny Bak developed a style using Polapan film photographing New York City's downtown diva scene, including Michael Musto,

Nile Rodgers Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. (born September 19, 1952) is an American musician, record producer and composer. The co-founder of Chic, Rodgers has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million ...

, Dominique and

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, which got her noticed by Annie Flanders, editor in chief and founder of ''

Details Detail(s) or The Detail(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''Details'' (film), a 2003 Swedish film * ''The Details'' (film), a 2011 American film * ''The Detail'', a Canadian television series * "The Detail" (''The Wire''), a television epis ...

'' magazine. Sunny Bak worked extensively throughout the mid eighties for ''Details'' as an advertising and fashion photographer. Her music clients included the Village People, Jellybean Benitez, and Fiona. In 1984, Bak's intern from City As School, David Skilken introduced her to his former bandmates from the punk rock band, The Young and the Useless who had since changed their style and their name to the

. The Beastie Boys became a semi permanent fixture at her studio where Bak often photographed their candid moments. Her studio became the location for their infamous " Fight For Your Right To Party" video and she shot them numerous times on the Licensed to Ill Tour. Her images of the Beastie Boys can be seen on the albums '' Licensed to Ill'', '' Solid Gold Hits'', ''Def Jam 25'', and "Def Jam Recordings: the First 25 Years of the Last Great Record Label" (Rizzoli 2011).

1990s

She lived in London in 1991 and worked as a fashion and music photographer. During this time she shot

10,000 Maniacs 10,000 Maniacs is an American alternative rock band that was founded in 1981. They have released nine studio albums, six EPs, and five live albums. They achieved their most significant success between 1987 and 1993, when they released four album ...

, Def American, Danzig,

Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...

, Philippe Saisse and Engelbert Humperdinck. In 1992, Sunny Bak moved to Los Angeles. Currently she shoots celebrity portraiture and produces film and television.

References

External links

* http://www.sunnybak.com/ * http://www.beastiemania.com/whois/ * http://www.slayersaves.com/seasons-in-the-abyss.php {{DEFAULTSORT:Bak, Sunny Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Artists from Manhattan American people of Chinese-Indonesian descent American people of Korean descent American women photographers 21st-century American women