CORY REYNOLDS | DATE 3/28/2019

Ruby Ray photographed punk and industrial culture in late '70s and early '80s San Francisco

"Late 70s, early 80s… Ruby Ray and her camera, capturing the movers and the shakers of the San Francisco punk and industrial scenes… And then some… Performance art, music, literature, photos, videos made with a 'fuck you' and 'do it yourself' attitude." So begins Carl Abrahamsson's introduction to Ruby Ray: Kalifornia Kool, launching tonight at City Lights Books in San Francisco. "Ruby sees and Ruby captures," Abrahamsson continues. "Knowns and unknowns, winners and losers, sane and insane, constructive and destructive… William Burroughs with his gun, Bruce Conner being fueled by punk energy, Sex Pistols' last ever gig in San Fran, Throbbing Gristle, The Cramps live at Napa Mental Hospital, Search and Destroy Magazine and bands and gigs galore…" Featured image is captioned, "Exene at Tire Beach, 1978. Exene Cervenka, poet and singer of LA band X, finds repose at the tire dump on the shores of the San Francisco Bay."