The following was my brief write-up on Facebook after attending the press launch for David Bowie Is at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum on 4 September 2012. It’s interesting that some of the items mentioned didn’t materialise, though all information was taken word for word from the museum’s own press release and/or public announcements on the day.
Is it any wonder?
Lovely press launch for the David Bowie Is exhibition at the V&A. Two multimedia rooms will boast over 300 delectable Dame David oddities including handwritten lyrics and original cut-ups to songs such as:
• Five Years (on display today along with his original artwork mock-ups for the Young Americans album), Blackout and Fame.
• Bowie’s hand-sketched storyboards for videos like the iconic Ashes To Ashes, the genesis of “Heroes” featuring six versions of the song from its origins as a poem.
• Unseen private films including a Herb Ritts photo shoot for Sound + Vision, and Dave showing his Hunger City preliminary stage sketches for the Diamond Dogs Tour to John Lennon at his Hotel Pierre suite in New York.
• Plus dozens of legendary costumes including the monochrome Dada from Saturday Night Live, Scary Monsters pierrot clown, Earthling frock coat and the quilted jumpsuit as worn on the infamous Top Of The Pops performance of Starman.
Lovely to see my old BowieStyle colleagues Mark Paytress and Gareth Harris again. Far out…
Steve Pafford co-authored the David Bowie book BowieStyle with Mark Paytress.
Gareth Harris was its PR manager while working at Orange Square Marketing & Publicity. He then left to take up a position at the Victoria & Albert Museum, which lead to his current employ at The Art Newspaper, of which this article was also published at the time.
My review of David Bowie Is for GuySpy is here
