McCartney lectures on new exhibition at Butler Institute of American Art Trumbull

Marissa Eisenbrei

Mike McCartney, brother of Paul McCartney, gave viewers a photographed tour of Scotland Thursday at his lecture at the Butler Institute of American Art, Trumbull Branch.

McCartney spoke about his work in his new exhibition ”Mike McCartney’s North Highlands.” The exhibition runs through Sept. 2.

A full crowd attended the lecture.

“I didn’t know what to expect out of this lecture, but his work is amazing and personable — and he cracked me up,” said Samantha Watkins, 22, from Warren.

Photos included pictures of local castles, a church with a sign that read, “This church is prayer conditioned,” a herd of sheep that surrounded McCartney when they thought he was there to feed them and photos of a truffle factory that serves “the best truffles in the world,” McCartney said.

He said this exhibition is his proudest work because it’s all about the nature.

“This exhibition is just for my images, not for celebrities,” McCartney said.

Previous exhibitions included photographs of his brother Paul McCartney and of Alice Cooper.

Along with the explanations of his work, he told personal stories. For example, in his photoset “The Triptych,” McCartney was in the home of a woman named Lotte Glob along with two others. They were all sitting at the kitchen table where a lamp hung over top. McCartney found if he placed his camera at a certain angle, it would look like each person was wearing a “Vietnamese pottery hat.”

McCartney said he has been “cursed with something called a sense of humor.”

Before McCartney began his lecture, a letter from Paul McCartney was read to attest to the humor in his work.

“His work often reflects his own quick wit and sense of humor, and it is fitting he should be exhibiting at the Butler Institute of American Art at this point in his career,” the letter said. “He also is a lovely man and I should know, for I am his big brother.”

The lecture was part of the Thomas Schroth Visiting Artist Series at Kent State University.

“It’s fantastic to have Mr. McCartney here,” said John Crawford, dean of the College of the Arts Dean. “It’s an honor to hear his lecture and to have him see Kent State.”

Contact Marissa Eisenbrei at [email protected].