The Art Gallery of Ontario brings another world-class show to Toronto. This time, it is an exhibition of personal photographs by Paul McCartney, titled “Paul McCartney Photographs 1963–64: Eyes of the Storm.”

The exhibition is organized by the National Portrait Gallery in London, England, in collaboration with McCartney himself. In her opening remarks, Flavia Frigeri, Curatorial and Collections Director at the National Portrait Gallery, noted that the exhibition acts as “a time capsule” of a very special moment in time.

In 2020, McCartney recalled that he used to carry a Pentax camera with him, taking photos of his bandmates and the people around them, while they were also taking photos of him. The images span only 10 weeks, from December 1963 to February 1964, yet they document the very beginning of the British group’s global domination.

Out of a thousand personal photographs discovered from those films, the show features 250 of the strongest images, capturing intimate portraits of John Lennon, Ringo Starr and George Harrison, along with their inner circle, and the crowds of fans and photographers who met the band on their travels. McCartney himself notes that he was “not setting out to be seen as a master photographer, more an occasional photographer who happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

From the Christmas shows in small theaters in Liverpool to their American debut and that historic appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, watched by 73 million Americans, the exhibition takes us on a journey, both chronological and geographical.

The photographs move from Liverpool to London, Paris, New York City, Washington, D.C. and Miami. It is fascinating that the exhibition mostly consists of black-and-white photographs, but once The Beatles arrive in Miami, it becomes an explosion of colour. As McCartney reflects, “… it’s like we were living in a black-and-white world on the rest of the tour and suddenly we’re in wonderland: Florida, the sun, the swimming pools.”

At the end, there is also a section produced by the AGO dedicated to the rise of Beatlemania in Toronto, including memorabilia and ephemera, such as concert ticket stubs and brochures.

“I was taking these photographs because I didn’t know how long it would last,” McCartney said. More than 60 years later, The Beatles remain ever-present.

Just as the Fab Four travelled from Liverpool to London, Paris, New York, Washington and Miami, this exhibition is also on a world tour. After its London premiere in 2023, it traveled to Brooklyn, Tokyo, Osaka, Portland, San Francisco and Nashville. Now it makes its final North American stop in Toronto before heading to Europe and Australia. This is definitely a must-see show.

Check out the exhibition in Toronto on the following dates:
Members’ & Annual Passholder Access: Feb 27–Mar 22, 2026
Public Access: From Mar 24, 2026

Photography by Darina Granik, taken with the permission of the gallery at the AGO media preview of the exhibition.