From candid snapshots of pop-art luminaries Keith Haring and Andy Warhol, to the key innovators of the hip hop and graffiti scenes of mid-80’s New York, Ricky Powell’s photography has documented some of the most important countercultural developments in recent history.

Subconsciously gravitating towards the nucleus of these embryonic scenes, Powell’s candid photography, taken from 1985 onwards, immortalised some of the most integral, inspiring, revered and respected protagonists of these subversive movements.

Nicknamed the ‘Fourth Beastie Boy’ and described by Fab 5 Freddy as the ‘Weegee of hip hop’, Powell’s photography provides the archetypal narrative with which to understand this unprecedented era of explosive creative, artistic, and musical innovation. As synonymous with the Golden Era of hip hop as the key individuals who defined it, Powell’s evocative and intimate shots of Run DMC, LL Cool J, Public Enemy, Eric B., Rakim, and of course The Beastie Boys, have long since become iconic reference points in mapping the evolution of the genre’s rise from its subcultural roots to the social mainstream.

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