David Bowie fans are about to get the ultimate backstage pass. The new David Bowie Centre promises a rare, up-close look at the icon’s creative universe.
From handwritten lyrics and stage costumes to unrealised film projects and synth manuals scrawled with his notes.
And... it’s free.
Nine rotating displays will explore everything from Bowie’s private sketches to ideas for a film adaptation of Orwell’s 1984 that never saw the light, as well as plans for Young Americans and Diamond Dogs films that never made it past the drawing board.
In a neat full-circle moment, Nile Rodgers – the legend behind Let’s Dance and Black Tie White Noise – has personally selected pieces for a display that captures what he calls the “love of the music that had both made and saved our lives.”
Expect to see Bowie’s Peter Hall suit from the Serious Moonlight tour, personal letters between Bowie and Rodgers, and behind-the-scenes photos with Stevie Ray Vaughan in the studio.
“My creative life with David Bowie provided the greatest success of his incredible career, but our friendship was just as rewarding,” Rodgers says.
The Last Dinner Party, the buzzy Brit award-winning band channelling Bowie’s theatrical energy for a new generation, are also guest curators.
They’ve picked out handwritten lyrics for Win from Young Americans, studio photos by Mick Rock, and set lists from the Station to Station tour that they say show how Bowie “created a sense of community for those who felt like outcasts.”
“Bowie is a constant source of inspiration to us,” says Georgia Davies of the band. “It was such a thrill to explore his archive and see first-hand the process that went into his world-building.”
-by-David-Bowie-2002--The-David-Bowie-ArchiveTM.jpeg)
But this isn’t just a museum experience behind glass. Fans can book one-on-one appointments to handle Bowie’s iconic stage costumes – from Ziggy Stardust’s Freddie Burretti-designed looks to his 1992 Thierry Mugler wedding suit – through the V&A’s “Order an Object” service.
Around 200 items will be on display at any one time, with visitors able to get closer to the archive than ever before.“
In the Centre, we want you to get closer to Bowie’s creative process than ever before,” says Madeleine Haddon, curator at V&A East.
“For Bowie fans and those coming to him for the first time, we hope the Centre can inspire the next generation of creatives.”
The David Bowie Centre opens 13 September at the V&A East Storehouse in Stratford, with free ticketed entry. Sign up for updates here.
