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This iconic photograph from the Altamont music festival jumped out at me whilst visiting Kunsthalle Praha earlier this year. I found it in the gift shop, in the form of a postcard. I don't normally buy postcards in the city I live in, but this picture spoke to me. It stayed on my desk in my office for several months, until it finally dawned on me to reach out to the author and ask for his permission to publish it in this blog. Little did I know at the time that Bill Owens is not only a renowned photographer, he is also a giant in the brewing and distilling world.
Bill was born in San Jose, CA September 25, 1938. He is known as the foremost chronicler of Suburbia, made famous with the publication of his book by that name in 1972.
In 1983 after working several years as a photojournalist, publishing a series of books and producing two children, Bill began his brewing career. He established Buffalo Bill’s, one of the nation’s first Brew Pubs which he operated until he sold it in 1994. Artifacts from Buffalo Bill’s Brew Pub were acquired by the Smithsonian Institute and sit alongside Owens’ photographs previously collected by the Smithsonian American Art Museum. He has received a Guggenheim Fellowship and two National Endowment for the Arts grants.
From 1993 to 1995 Bill published BEER the magazine. Moved by the spirits Bill went on to found The American Distilling Institute (ADI), the oldest and largest organization of small batch, independently owned distillers in the United States which he continues to lead and cultivate.
Astonishingly, all the while Bill has continued to make, exhibit and sell his photographs. His photographs have been exhibited internationally and are in many collections including the Museum of Modern Art, Berkeley Art Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, San Jose Museum of Art and the Getty Museum in Los Angeles.
Bill Owens took the photo above at the infamous Altamont rock festival in December 1969, thirty-five years after the ban on Ulysses was overturned. It is a powerful visual representation of the era’s radical shift towards personal freedom and self-expression. This image encapsulates the essence of the countercultural movements that emerged during this time, driven by a desire to break free from conventional norms and embrace new forms of liberty.
The 1960s were marked by a significant departure from the conservative values of the previous decades. Festivals like Altamont and Woodstock became iconic symbols of this transformation, where music, art, and personal expression converged in a celebration of freedom.
Owens’ photograph, with its unabashed depiction of nudity in a public space, illustrates how the pendulum of freedom had swung far to the left. It showcases an era where people felt liberated to express themselves without fear of judgment or repression. This image is not just a snapshot of a moment but a reflection of a broader societal change where individuality and freedom of expression were fiercely defended and celebrated.
The unbanning of James Joyce’s Ulysses was a catalyst for a cultural and artistic revolution in the United States. It symbolised the triumph of modernism and set the stage for the radical social changes in the decades ahead.
Bill very kindly gave me permission to write about the photo and what it means to me. He also generously sent a couple of books, including “The American Distilling Institute Coloring Book” which is inspired by pictures he took during the past 20 years, whilst driving across America four times, and visiting the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, Tasmania, Ireland, Norway, Czech Republic, France, Germany and Italy, photographing the full range of craft distilleries.
It warms my soul how total strangers can connect from opposite sides of the world and share stories and passions.
Welcome to the journey.
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