Dennis Hopper’s, “Sign’s of the Times,” opened Saturday at Tony Shafrazi Gallery to coincide with the publication of his new, fully illustrated book, Dennis Hopper Photographs: 1960-1967. Hopper’s Exhibit features an extensive collection of his acclaimed 1960’s photographs, twelve never-before-seen “billboard paintings”, and various clips from his half-century long career as an actor and director.



Peter Brant, Victoria Hopper and Dennis Hopper

Saturday evening, when the doors opened to Tony Shafrazi Gallery, a gentle buzz quickly filled the spacious reaches of the show room. What began as a relatively modest gathering rapidly grew to a vibrant crowd when, around 7PM, Dennis Hopper appeared with his wife Victoria Duffy and their daughter Galen Hopper.

Hundreds of black and white photos lined the various rooms, from floor to ceiling. One wing of the exhibit was dedicated solely to Hopper’s film career, showing excerpts from such classics as “Apocalypse Now”, “Easy Rider”, and “True Romance”.



Gallery Atmosphere

What is most impressive about Hopper’s photography is how he is able to depict iconic figures and pioneers, such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, with an intimacy and familiarity that is palpable in their expressions. Hopper is able to show an honest and quirky side of artists and musicians that only a friend or respected colleague can.

The expanse of Hopper’s talent doesn’t just capture actors, musicians or artists, but actually encompasses the entire Sixties, an era in America that was defined by artistic and social progress. These are many of the faces that led the rush.

About an hour after Hopper’s arrival, Sean Penn, Matt Dillon, Tim Robbins, Stephen Dorff, Peter Brant, Laurence Graff and Salman Rushdie joined the gathering and added to the excitement. For more on Dennis Hopper’s “Signs of the Times” exhibit go to tonyshafrazigallery.com



Laurence Graff and Tony Shafrazi