Sir Elton John’s fans will be soon able to discover one of the English singer and songwriter’s unheralded passions: Modernist photography. Only a few know he started a personal collection in 1991, focusing on artists and pieces disrupting the medium. Since then, he has gathered several thousand of photographs.

After having kept that collection private for years, Sir Elton John agreed to expose a part of it to the public at the Tate Modern, in London, during a special exhibition.

“The Radical Eye: modernist photography from the Sir Elton John Collection” brings together selected pieces taken between 1920 and 1950 by some of the most-known avant-garde artists from the last century.

Sir Elton John

From documentary photography to portraits and abstract work, John’s collection will document the evolution of photography during the first half of the 20th century.The pieces selected for the exhibition will be flown in from the singer’s multiple properties around the world. In all, over 150 rare and iconic photographs by more than 60 artists will be on show.

Anticipated highlights from the exhibition include portraits of 20th-century icons Georgia O’Keeffe, Jean Cocteau, Igor Stravinski, André Breton, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso, as well as groundbreaking modernist works by photographers André Kertész, Man Ray, Berenice Abbot, Alexandr Rodchenko, and Edward Steichen.

The Radical Eye collection will be displayed in the Tate Modern, barely six months after the London museum completed its major architectural renovation in June 2016. Those interested in the exhibition are invited to join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #RadicalEye.

 “The Radical Eye: modernist photography from the Sir Elton John Collection“, Tate Modern London, from Nov 10 to May 7, 2017.