Elvis Exhibit at the Grammy Museum

Elvis Exhibit at the Grammy Museum


On Jan. 8 the museum will open "Elvis at 21: Photographs by Alfred Wertheimer," pairing the intimate looks at the star with rare footage and collectibles. It's a joint production with the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, and Santelli intends to start the Grammy Museum's continuing education program with the exhibit.
Santelli, who served as an executive at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the Experience Music Project in Seattle, comes from the academic world, having taught at Monmouth University and Rutgers. His course on Presley, said Santelli, should start in January. "It’s free to members and the community, so people will be able to come to this four- or five-part program," he said. "The intention is to keep this very accessible to the general public and our managers."
The Presley display will be one of three or four temporary exhibits the museum hopes to host in 2010, taking over the second-floor space vacated by the yearlong "Songs of Conscience, Sounds of Freedom" installation. The museum will continue to expand its Latin Grammy floorspace, and it became a national tourist destination thanks to its ever-expanding "Michael Jackson: A Musical Legacy" exhibit.
I grew up on Elvis Presley music. Personally, and professionally as a curator, it’s always irked me that young people, especially when they think of Elvis, they see the caricature of the fat guy in the jumpsuit. They don’t really understand why two previous generations so admired this guy, and history has recognized him as one of the great cultural innovators.
When I heard the Smithsonian was doing this exhibit, I said, "Wow, I would love to be the first place to show this." We’re dealing with the Elvis that people need to remember. The guy was 21 years old in 1956, and gave birth to popular music culture. I had a relationship with the Smithsonian for years, and they agreed to let us take it. We embellished what they originally intended it to do. They originally intended it to be just a photo exhibit, but I went to Graceland and to collectors. There are artifacts, and there will be films and rare footage we will show as part of the exhibit. There’s some interactivity, a lot of multimedia and then the objects. Elvis turns 75 the day it opens.

ElvisUnlimited, 15.12.2009