"I feel like I’m in heaven. I do. I feel that I’m telling a story with the songs that I sing," he says. "I’m sending something to our young kids to take with them when I’m gone."

Fernando Sandoval is the man behind the camera. He took the pictures while developing personal relationships with R&B musicians like Black Magic and Mr. Lee.

Fernando Sandoval's collection was kick started with a series of photos that he took of musician Mr. Lee.

"I guess unconsciously I was collecting this work to bring it finally to a gallery like this so they could get the recognition they deserve and are looking for," says Sandoval.

Fellow R&B singer, Selena McDay, was among the fans who came to provide that recognition. "I’m so glad Fernando did this because I’ve worked with almost all of these people. Bobby Parker and I have shared the stage with Chuck Brown."

Others are happy for a behind-the-scenes glimpse.

"A lot of these people you never see the face," says Joe Filosa, an art collector. "You always listen to the music, so it’s great to put the face with the music, which is great."

Local resident Bill Adair says he loves seeing photos of Chuck Brown in the exhibit because "he’s a Washington staple."

Magic in concert

"I think it’s a wonderful exhibit. I think it’s a fabulous collection of Washington area blues musicians," says Bill Wax, a program director at SiriusXM Satellite Radio, who believes the exhibit is important for two reasons. "First of all, it’s important because blues is important. It is the mother tongue of almost all American music. Number two, blues is a really unique music in that it’s not made up of big stars. Blues survives - and has survived for almost a 100 years - because ordinary people, not big stars, have loved the music, learned to play it and committed their lives to it."