Britain’s V&A museum secures David Bowie archive of over 80K items, will go public in 2025

The museum, which hosted the critically acclaimed “David Bowie Is” exhibition in 2013, will open The David Bowie Centre for the Research of Performing Arts at its V&A East Storehouse in east London, the place followers, college pupils and researchers will be capable of acquire perception into the pioneering British singer-songwriter’s artistic course of.

The archive options Bowie’s handwritten lyrics for songs like “Fame” and “Heroes”, sketches, letters, costumes — together with his Ziggy Stardust items — stage props, devices in addition to intimate writings and unrealised tasks, many not seen earlier than in public.

There are additionally greater than 70,000 footage, prints, slides, negatives, massive format transparencies and call sheets taken by famed photographers together with Terry O’Neill and Helmut Newton.

“The archive is fascinating, it follows David Bowie’s profession and his life was artwork,” Kate Bailey, senior curator and producer, theatre and efficiency on the V&A, informed Reuters.

“It has insights into the artistic course of behind so a lot of his music movies, his songs, his stage reveals, his theatre reveals.”

Bowie, a visionary rock star who straddled the worlds of music, vogue, drama and artwork for 5 many years, died from most cancers in 2016, aged 69. “With David’s life’s work turning into a part of the UK’s nationwide collections, he takes his rightful place amongst many different cultural icons and inventive geniuses,” a spokesperson from the David Bowie Property, stated within the V&An announcement in regards to the acquisition.

The museum stated it secured the archive and will create the brand new centre due to the David Bowie Property and a ten million pound ($12 million) donation from the Blavatnik Household Basis and Warner Music Group.

“What’s extraordinary in regards to the legacy is that this, we envision, will assist encourage the following era of artistic pioneers and practitioners,” Bailey stated.

“We will replicate and see how Bowie modified the world after which for different individuals to select that up and run with it’s nice too.”