Icon Photographer Allan Tannenbaum

New Jersey native Allan Tannenbaum’s interest in photography took root in the mid ’60s, when he launched his career shooting the San Francisco hippie scene and musicians like Jimi Hendrix. After a stint in the Merchant Marine, he moved to New York where he worked as a taxi driver and bartender while pursuing a photography position.

Landing a job with the SoHo Weekly News, Allan served as the Chief Photographer and Photo Editor from its founding in 1973 until its 1982 closure. He documented New York art, politics, showbiz, music, and nightlife, and is best known for his definitive coverage of the burgeoning New York City punk and new wave rock scenes of the 1970s.

Since the mid ’80s, Allan has worked as a photojournalist covering news and features around the globe. He has exhibited his fine-art photography worldwide and has published several books of his work including New York in the ’70s (2003), John and Yoko: A New York Love Story (2007), and Grit and Glamour: The Street Style, High Fashion, and Legendary Music of the 1970s (2016). He continues to live and work in Manhattan.