Two legendary artists will showcase their extraordinary work at Stirling’s annual Photography Festival which returns for a ninth year next month with the theme of ‘Journey.’
Music photography icon at Tolbooth
Celebrated music photographer Jill Furmanovsky, who photographed the Oasis 2025 reunion tour, opens her exhibition ‘Rebels and Renegades’ at Tolbooth Stirling on Friday, August 14. Curated by Rock Archive, in association with Street Level Photoworks, it covers her decades of photographing music icons including Stevie Wonder, Amy Winehouse and Annie Lennox plus bands such as The Clash, The Police, Madness, Blondie, Joy Division, Oasis and many more.
Malcolm Dickson, from Street Level Photoworks, said: “It is a pleasure to bring the work of Jill Furmanovsky to the Tolbooth as part of Stirling Photography Festival, who we have partnered with for several years. The exhibition includes seminal classic black and white images as well as colour and montage displays from Jill’s extensive collection at Rock Archive, which she founded in 1998. From the eruption of Punk in the 70s, tech-driven pop of the 80s and the collision of cultural forms in the ‘Britpop’ 90s, Jill’s work demonstrates the power of the photographic image as inextricably linked to the value and legacy of the music itself across the decades.”
Stirling Photography Festival creative director and founder Janie Meikle Bland added: “We are thrilled to welcome Jill to exhibit at this year’s Stirling Photography Festival. We’ll be hosted by our long-term partners at the Tolbooth Gallery, perfectly set in Stirling’s award-winning music and arts venue in the city’s old town. It’s a summer of music for Stirling, so huge thanks to Malcolm for bringing Jill’s exhibition here – perfect timing. Jill’s exhibition will open with an in-conversation event hosted by broadcaster and journalist Nicola Meighan in a fabulous evening of photography, music and chat – we can’t wait.”
Fashion and cinema legend
Fabrizio’s exhibition, ‘Fab! A Life in Cinema and Fashion Photography’, runs from Saturday, August 22, to Wednesday, September 30, at the Macrobert Arts Centre in Stirling. It features a selection of work from his vast archive following a creative career spanning five decades. The show has been curated in partnership with John Carberry, lecturer at City of Glasgow College, where Fabrizio has been a great support to student photographers over the years.
Fabrizio began his working life in the Italian film industry, where he was assistant director on Sergio Leone’s classic ‘The Good the Bad and The Ugly,’ before becoming a world-renowned fashion photographer working with top magazines including Vogue, Elle, GQ and Harper’s Bazaar. John says of Fabrizio’s work: “Fabrizio Gianni’s images have lost none of their power over time. Elegant, imaginative and deeply human, they capture both the energy of a remarkable era in fashion and the unique vision of an artist whose influence continues to resonate with photographers and audiences today.”
Fabrizio, who lives in Falkirk, is delighted to bring his show to Stirling.
Community and environmental highlights
The festival, which runs for six weeks in total, also features portraits by Stirling-born photographer Margaret Mitchell together with community shots by local photographer Charles McGuigan celebrating Strathcarron Hospice to mark the organisation’s 45th anniversary. The touring event, sponsored by The Robertson Trust, launches at the Barracks on Forthside Way in August before moving to Forth Valley Hospital and the Tolbooth at the end of the year. This collaboration reflects the festival’s long-term values of working with community groups to highlight their aims and build local links.
Also featured on the programme is environmental photographer Ted Leeming whose exhibition ‘Our Place in Time: If Place Mirrors Who We Are, What Does It Reflect?’ goes on show at the Macrobert Arts Centre. Stirling Photography Festival also has a record of wonderful collaborations on multi-art form projects and this year local poet Lynda Gairns will launch a new Poetry Path around Airthrey Loch as part of the programme.
Janie Meikle Bland added: “The festival has gone from strength to strength since we started in 2018 with our Stirling Youth Photo Fest. Built by an incredible team of volunteers over the past nine years we have grown our reputation nationally and are now well known for bringing legendary photographers to Stirling, as well as creating opportunities for up and coming artists. We are delighted to be a regular fixture in Stirling’s celebrated cultural calendar and as a member of Stirling’s newly launched Culture Collective, we are looking forward to a very exciting tenth anniversary next year.”
Meanwhile, sponsorship from local businesses has ensured the delivery of an exceptional programme of events and exhibitions. This year’s sponsors include Stirling Aparthotel – who are hosting Jill Furmanovsky at their King Street boutique hotel – and regular sponsors Untitled Barbers Club; the Meadowpark Bar and Kitchen and Vialii Gardens.
