See Macon exhibit that spotlights photographer’s work with Michael Jackson & Black artists

The Jackson 5 performing on their final tour. Stevie Wonder playing at Martin Luther King Jr.’s funeral. A young Beyoncè performing at an award show in Atlanta. These are just a few examples among photographer Bud Smith’s vast collection of photos of Black musicians on display at the Tubman African American Museum’s “Thrillers!” exhibit.

The exhibit was unveiled during a reception Sunday that featured remarks from Smith and Jeff Bruce, the museum’s director of exhibitions. It runs through Sept. 28.

Documenting Black music in Atlanta between the ‘60s and the ‘90s, “Thrillers” features some of the most legendary acts of the 20th century in everything from watercolor-like photos of rising stars in front of enormous, screaming crowds, to somber black-and-white portraits of aging artists reflecting on their lives.

Smith said he sought to portray Black artists in a way that honors their legacies and contributions in hopes of making his own mark on the music scene.

“It’s how you present people that makes them remember who you are,” Smith said.

Who is Bud Smith?

Smith is a renowned photographer who has spent his career capturing pivotal moments in Black history. A native of Atlanta, he has spent his entire career in the city and worked for publications including “The Atlanta Voice,” “The Atlanta World,” “Ebony,” “Jet” and “Life.”

He photographed Coretta Scott King’s funeral, a memorial service for the late Rep. John Lewis at the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and Hank Aaron hitting his record-breaking 715th home run. Through all of this, though, some of Smith’s most memorable photos were of the many Black acts that came through Atlanta’s music scene.

In addition to taking photos for newspapers and magazines, Smith worked for several Atlanta PR firms, as well as A&M and Motown Records. This allowed him to get up close and personal with new performers, many of whom went on to become cultural juggernauts.

Smith recalled one such encounter with a 16-year-old Michael Jackson when he came through New Orleans in 1979 as part of the Jackson 5. Jackson was a shy, scrawny boy who spoke so softly Smith had to lean in close to hear him speak.

“As soon as you put a mic in his hand he was a whole different person, as we all found out,” Smith said.

On another occasion, Smith was asked to take pictures of the newly-formed Commodores. At the time, the group’s members were college students at Tuskegee University in Alabama. Smith remembers the group’s manager giving him 50 tickets to the show in hopes that he would pass them along to locals to help build a following.

An exhibit a long time in the making

Bruce said the exhibit has been in the works since about 2008. That year, a former director with the Tubman Museum met Smith and his wife when he bought a car from them.

While he was at their home, Smith invited the director into his basement to look at his collection of photos. The director was impressed, and told museum staff they needed to contact Smith to put together an exhibit with his photos.

Later that year, the museum unveiled the “Atlanta Series,” which featured more than 80 of Smith’s photos documenting Black history and culture in Atlanta. It was the first retrospective Smith had ever done.

“It was this big, sprawling survey of some of the work he had done over the last 50 years,” Bruce said.

As he looked through the photos, Bruce noticed that many of the most striking images were of Black musicians. This inspired him to propose an exhibit focused on Smith’s photos of performers. Sixteen years later, “Thrillers!” finally came to fruition.

The exhibit features dozens of photos, still only a fraction of Smith’s collection. Smith said he had thousands of photos of the Jackson brothers alone, many of which have never been showcased.

Bruce said he and museum staff sorted through the many photos to curate a selection that would resonate most with audiences.

Nearly all of the photos were shot on film, which Smith said remains his preferred photography medium. The film photos were original copies that had been meticulously stored to keep them in pristine condition, Smith and Bruce said.

Keeping history and culture alive

Bruce and Smith both agreed displaying the photos is essential to remembering the legacy of Black artists.

Bruce said the museum frequently hosts educational workshops and activities to bring young people into the museum. However, since installing the exhibit, he realized younger generations aren’t always aware of these acts.

“I’ve had young people come into this exhibit and they don’t know who anyone is. I’m like, ‘How do you not know?’” Bruce said. “It just proves that it’s valuable for us to keep doing exhibits like this to keep that culture and history alive, because otherwise it will be lost.”

Smith echoed a similar sentiment. He said one of his main goals as a photographer was to portray his subjects with dignity, and he hopes viewers will see his efforts in the finished products.

“Whoever I was shooting, I felt that I was in charge of being aware of (how they were portrayed),” Smith said. “It was important to me that whatever I handed out I wouldn’t mind saying, ‘Yes, that’s my photograph.’”

This story was originally published July 30, 2024 at 11:53 AM.