Angus Young (b. 1955) and his brother Malcolm formed Australia's most successful band, AC/DC, in Sydney in 1973, with Bon Scott joining as lead singer the following year. With four huge singles in Australia, they were signed to an international deal in 1975; in 1979 they released their sixth album, Highway to Hell. Back in Black, issued five months after Scott's death, is said to be the second-highest-selling album of all time worldwide, after Michael Jackson’s Thriller. A teetotaller, married since 1980, Young has thrived in relative seclusion in the Netherlands and Sutherland Shire, south of Sydney, emerging periodically for AC/DC's sell-out tours.
This portrait is from Ingvar Kenne's series Citizen, in which each of the sitters is portrayed using a uniform composition and pared-back, square format. By applying the same photographic parameters and treating each of his sitters as equal, Kenne creates an intimate collective of what he refers to as 'fellow man'. Here he captures Young in a relaxed moment – his eyes are closed, arms hugging himself, cigarette casually hanging from his mouth – against a Sydney Harbour backdrop.
Gift of the artist 2017. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
© Ingvar Kenne
Ingvar Kenne (15 portraits)
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
April Thompson explores an exhibition of Ingvar Kenne’s global portrait project.
Bon Scott and Angus Young photographed by Rennie Ellis are part of a display celebrating summer and images of the shirtless male.
