90s grunge bassist Melissa Auf der Maur, formerly of HOLE and Smashing Pumpkins, takes us on a grunge journey through her decade of road photographs. Courtney Love goofing around backstage, self-portraits from sold-out arenas, moody images that mirror the complex grief of losing friends to drugs, suicide and illness. Auf der Maur accidentally became a 1990s musical icon and originally meant to become a photographer, so her archive of this historical time period with her fellow cultural tastemakers is a sometimes brutal but always real slice of touring life.
“A decade of exhilaration and excess and tragedy all at once.” —CNN
Signed books will be available
Before becoming the bassist for ‘90s alternative rock bands, Montreal-born Melissa Auf der Maur studied photography at Concordia University. She maintained her daily practice while on the road, requesting a roll of 35mm film at every venue as part of her rider. A major exhibition of Auf der Maur’s photographs is on view at the Art Gallery of Ontario from September 2, 2026. In 2010 she cofounded the nonprofit arts and performance center Basilica Hudson, located in upstate New York. In March, Auf der Maur published her memoir, Even the Good Girls Will Cry.
This project is made possible with funds from the New York State Legislature and administered by Arts Mid-Hudson.