X: On the Road and At the Crossroads, Photographs of the band X
About this Event
Beyond Baroque presents Michael Hyatt's X: On the Road and At the Crossroads in the Mike Kelley Gallery.
The exhibition, alongside the book published by Perceval Press, features photographs of the legendary Los Angeles punk band X spanning 1980 to 2025. Hyatt first traveled with the band as their photographer during their debut tour in December 1980, continued documenting them on two additional early tours, and reunited with X to photograph four performances in Texas in 2025. The exhibition includes group and solo portraits, live performance photographs, and behind-the-scenes candid images.
Hyatt frames the book as a chronicle of the band traversing the American landscape, inspired by Jack Kerouac's On the Road. The book also features a foreword by Chris Morris.
In celebration of the exhibition opening, Beyond Baroque will also host a reading in the Wanda Coleman Theater featuring X co-lead singer and poet Exene Cervenka, with S.A. Griffin, Brendan Constantine, Chris Morris, Iris Berry, and mike m mollet. The reading will be emceed by Henry Mortensen.
Following the reading, join us for the exhibition reception and a book signing.
About the authors
Exene Cervenka sings and writes songs for the bands X and The Knitters. She has released a lot of solo records, about 13 X records, 2 Knitters records, and three poetry books along with spoken word recordings.
Her first job in LA was a taxpayer-funded position at Beyond Baroque. She was first trained in typesetting and layout. They also rented her an apartment upstairs from the world’s largest and most important small press library, which was in the room next to the poetry reading and workshop space, which was in the building in front of the offices, where she worked. Oh, and there was a liquor store attached to the library, and a jazz club next door.
Exene is grateful to have spent 50 years making poetry and music; and to Beyond Baroque for opening the door to her future.
Chris Morris wrote the text for Last Gasp Press’ book “Beyond and Back: The Story of X” in 1983. He served as special music publicist for the 1986 documentary “X: The Unheard Music.” In 2005, he received a Grammy Award nomination for best album notes for his contribution to Rhino Records’ boxed set & No Thanks! The Punk Rebellion.” Morris contributed chapters to John Doe and Tom DeSavia’s “Under the Big Black Sun” (2017) and “More Fun in the New World” (2019). He is also the author of books about Los Lobos and Bob Dylan. He was the principal music critic at the alt-weekly the Los Angeles Reader from its first issue in 1978 to its last in 1996; his writing about music appeared in Billboard, the Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Rolling Stone, the Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, and many other publications.
Michael Hyatt’s early years working in the documentary and street photography fields were inspired by icons Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Hyatt is the author of Organ Pipe - Life on the Edge (University of Arizona Press) with Carol Ann Bassett, plus two Eric Hoffer Independent Book Publishing Award titles: Migrant Artifacts – Magic and Loss in the Sonoran Desert (Great Circle Books) and Along the Migrant Trail – A Borderlands Portrait (Frontera Nueva Books). He is also the author of Fifth and Wall Street – Skid Row, Los Angeles in the 1970s (Rose of Sharon Press) with Charles Pavlich. Both the Center for Creative Photography, through Art Patronage, and the University of Arizona Special Collections house prints and box sets of his work in their permanent collections. Hyatt’s work has been widely exhibited in galleries and museums since 1977. Collaborations between Michael and Exene, 1982 – 1984, resulted in xerography and mail art calendars and years later the Lucky 13 Box Set of X Postcards. He also contributed images to the books Beyond and Back – The Story of X, Under the Big Black Sun and More Fun in the New World, and his life-size rooftop portrait of X was featured at the Grammy Museum tribute to the 40 th Anniversary of X in 2017. The YouTube video Pictures at an Exhibition––50 Years of Photography and more is available at michael-hyatt.com.
M (aka mike m mollett): A defiant voice in L.A.’s literary/art/culture scene. A native L.Alien, poet, artist, performer, organizer, four decades strong, Collapsing boundaries between literary & artforms. Writing poetry since a teenager. A postmodern renaissance spirit where LIFE/ART takes risks. Dadaist, Fluxus ethos. The 64 VW Bus Questions of The Week led him into MailArt, Mailart inspired DADAFEST LA & ZTZU art space. Following all that becoming “leader” of non-verbal slow-moving L.A. Mudpeople, & co-founder of the wild Lost Tribe & Carma Bums perf. poets. Recently published HARD TO SAY IN A WAY THAT MIGHT BE HEARD. Latest anthologies: Maintenant 20: Dada Writing & Art, 3 Rooms press; Beat Not Beat, Moontide press.
Iris Berry is a native Angelino and one of the original progenitors of the L.A. punk scene. She's the author of several books. Known for her wit and often dark, factual accuracy, she writes her experiences with grace and deadly precision, like a haunting tour of Los Angeles that lingers like one of the city's unsolved murders. Berry has appeared in numerous films, TV commercials, documentaries, and iconic rock videos. In the 1980s she was a singer for the band the Lame Flames. Later co-founded the Ringling Sisters and recorded with producer Lou Adler. Berry also sang, wrote songs and recorded with the Dickies, the Flesh Eaters and Pink Sabbath. She’s received two certificates of merit from the city of Los Angeles for her extensive charity work, and her contributions as a Los Angeles writer and historian. In 2010 Berry served on the Board of Directors for Beyond Baroque Literary/Arts Center. In 2012, Iris, along with A. Razor co-founded their imprint PUNK HOSTAGE PRESS where they continue to champion and advocate for original voices.
S.A. Griffin, the author of Pandemic Soul Music (Punk Hostage Press) is co-editor of Beat Not Beat (Moon Tide Press) and The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry (Firecracker Award). Co-founder of The Lost Tribe and progenitor of The Carma Bums, in 2010 he went on a five-week, 11,000 mile Couch Surfing Across America Tour of Words with Elsie the Poetry Bomb, a 7 foot tall Vietnam era practice bomb converted into an art object filled with the sacred ashes of poets, cats, dogs, performance artists and over 900 poems from around the world in an effort to spread Elsie’s message that we must learn to disagree, or our Republic is lost. In 2012 S.A. was the first recipient of Beyond Baroque’s Distinguished Service. In 2015 UCLA acquired his archives as their first acquisition for their Punk Initiative. Vietnam era veteran of the USAF, husband, father and cat lover, he drives too fast, thinks too much and sleeps too little.
Brendan Constantine is poet based in Los Angeles. His work has appeared in many standards, including Poetry, Best American Poetry, The Nation, and Poem a Day. A popular performer, Brendan has presented his work to audiences throughout the United States and Europe, also appearing on NPR’s ‘All Things Considered,’ TED ED, numerous podcasts and YouTube. His fifth collection ‘The Opposites Game’ is out now from Red hen Press. He currently teaches at the Windward School and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
About Beyond Baroque
Beyond Baroque is one of the United States' leading independent Literary | Arts Centers and public spaces dedicated to expanding the public's knowledge of poetry, literature and art through cultural events and community interaction. Founded in 1968 as an experimental literary magazine, Beyond Baroque is based out of the original City Hall building in Venice, California. The Center offers a diverse variety of literary and arts programming including readings and workshops. The building also houses a bookstore with a large collection of new poetry books for sale.
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If you are attending in person, ticket purchase is required. Tickets will be available at the Beyond Baroque bookstore on the day of the event, but we recommend registering in advance through Eventbrite. Masks are encouraged while inside our center. Please arrive early.
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