Poolside at the Pollaks’, Miami, February 15, 1964.
There’s something thrilling about encountering a photograph that’s never been seen before—especially when it relates to a celebrity or otherwise renowned figure. This sensation is one that will undeniably be felt during Gagosian’s Paul McCartney exhibition in Beverly Hills.
Opening on April 25, 2025, the exhibition gathers 36 rediscovered photographs captured by McCartney between December 1963 and February 1964 at the height of Beatlemania. Each image radiates a charming innocence, as McCartney himself reflected, and now offers a candid glimpse into the meteoric rise of The Beatles from their own point of view. Scenes range from a self-portrait in a hotel mirror and an afternoon by a pool in Miami to being chased by fans in New York, as shot from a car’s rear window.
“Everything was new to us at this point,” McCartney has said of the photographs. “They now bring back so many stories, a flood of special memories, which is one of the many reasons I love them all, and know that they will always fire my imagination.”
For the past few years, McCartney’s trove of photographs has traveled to several art institutions, including London’s National Portrait Gallery, the Chrysler Museum of Art in Virginia, Brooklyn Museum, and Tokyo City View. Gagosian’s exhibition, however, will showcase images that, until now, were previously unseen, journeying to cities like Liverpool, London, Paris, and Washington, D.C.
Though certainly “evoking a key interval in 20th-century cultural history,” as Gagosian writes, these images also reveal McCartney’s dexterity as a photographer. The exhibition’s mix of color and black-and-white photographs were shot with a 35mm Pentax camera, depicting intimate portraits of fellow bandmates, moments caught while on tour, and, perhaps most compellingly, dramatic compositions recorded from moving vehicles.
“Taking photographs, I’d be just looking for a shot. I’d aim the camera and just sort of see where I liked it, you know, ‘oh, that’s it.’ And invariably, you pretty much take one picture,” McCartney told CBS in an interview. “We were moving fast. So, you just learned to take pictures quickly.”
In response to the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, McCartney collaborated with Gagosian to produce prints of select photographs in small editions. Each print has been signed, with a portion of sale proceeds being donated to the city’s ongoing recovery and rebuilding efforts.
To learn more about the Paul McCartney exhibition, visit the Gagosian website.
A treasure trove of Paul McCartney’s photographs, some of which have never been seen before, is coming to Gagosian this spring.
Self-portraits in a mirror at the George V Hotel, Paris, January 1964 (detail).
The exhibition, titled Paul McCartney, gathers 36 photographs taken by the musician in the 60s during the height of Beatlemania, offering intimate glimpses of the band’s rise to fame from their point of view.
Being chased by fans on West 58th Street, New York City, February 12, 1964.
Exhibition Information
Paul McCartney
April 25-June 21, 2025
Gagosian Gallery
456 North Camden Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Gagosian.
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