Exhibition: Al Satterwhite - A Retrospective

For the first exhibition of the fall art gallery season, PDNB Gallery presents a solo show of photographs by Al Satterwhite (b. 1944, Biloxi, Mississippi), who has worked professionally in photography since he was a high school intern taking photographs for the St. Petersburg Times. The passion of capturing the decisive moment has never left him.

His talent for photography led him to the job of personal photographer for the then Governor of Florida, Claude Kirk. He later worked as a freelance photographer, doing magazine work for major publications including Life, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Car & Driver.

Satterwhite then started a production company in New York in 1980 where he became widely known in the advertising world working with corporations including American Express, Coca Cola, Eastman Kodak, Oldsmobile, and Sony.

In 1992 he moved west to Los Angeles to work in filmmaking as a Director of Photography.

Many books were published on Satterwhite’s photography, and he lectured often at universities and workshops around the country. His photographs are in major museum collections including the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

Satterwhite met many fascinating people while working on assignments. One meeting with Hunter S. Thompson resulted in some of his most popular photographs when he traveled to Cozumel, Mexico to meet the infamous Gonzo journalist . He photographed Muhammad Ali while training in a gym in Miami Beach, Florida. Some of these images are iconic of Ali, showing him young, powerful, and full-of-life.

Satterwhite had a great opportunity to photograph Paul Newman as an authentic race car driver at the important Sebring 12-Hour race in Florida. In 1977 Satterwhite photographed him in his racing gear, revealing the iconic ‘Paul Newman’ Rolex Daytona watch that his wife, Joanne Woodward, gave him with an inscription on the back, “Drive Very Slowly, Joanne.”

PDNB Gallery will show a suite of photographs from Satterwhite's early, personal work taken in Florida. His vintage images of young surfers in the 1960’s have become very nostalgic because they represent a more innocent culture reminiscent of the beach party teen films like Beach Blanket Bingo and How to Stuff a Wild Bikini.

This is Satterwhite’s first solo exhibition at PDNB Gallery. It will be a great kick-off for the exciting 2024 fall season.