London’s Victoria & Albert museum has confirmed the acquisition of over 80,000 letters, lyrics, photos, sketches, stage designs, music awards and costumes from David Bowie’s life and collection.
The extensive archive includes several instruments owned by the star, including the Stylophone he played on his breakout 1969 single Space Oddity.
The collection will be a permanent display in a newly designed venue in East London, the David Bowie Centre for the Study of Performing Arts, which will open in 2025.
Described by V&A Director, Dr. Tristan Hunt, as a “new sourcebook for the Bowies of tomorrow”, much of the content has never been shown publicly before.
“The David Bowie Centre for the Study of Performance – and the behind the scenes access that V&A East Storehouse offers- will mean David’s work can be shared with the public in ways that haven’t been possible before.”
Visitors will be able to see Bowie’s personal notebooks, discover the beginnings of his ideas for unrealised projects and early costume sketches. A range of iconic outfits will also be included, from Bowie’s own Ziggy Stardust creations, to the Union Jack coat he designed with Alexander McQueen for the cover of 1997 album, Earthling, as well as pieces by Kansai Yamamoto where were part of Bowie’s 1973 Aladdin Sane tour.
“David Bowie was one of the greatest musicians and performers of all time. The V&A is thrilled to become custodians of his incredible archive, and to be able to open it up for the public. Bowie’s radical innovations across music, theatre, film, fashion, and style – from Berlin to Tokyo to London – continue to influence design and visual culture,” Dr. Hunt said in a press release. “Our new collections centre, V&A East Storehouse, is the ideal place to put Bowie’s work in dialogue with the V&A’s collection spanning 5,000 years of art, design, and performance.”
All images courtesy of The David Bowie Archive/PA
