The V&A’sdavid bowie The Is…’ exhibition is set to become a permanent venue in the UK to celebrate his legacy.
The exhibition, which was first shown in 2013, will now be housed in the new David Bowie Center for the Study of Performing Arts at the V&A’s East Storehouse in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
It will open from 2025 and made possible by a £10 million donation from the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Warner Music Group.
The center will feature more than 80,000 items from Bowie’s groundbreaking 60-year career.
V&A Director Dr Tristram Hunt said: “David Bowie was one of the greatest musicians and performers of all time. The V&A is delighted to become the guardians of its incredible archives and to be able to open them to the public. Bowie’s sweeping innovations in music, theater, film, fashion and style – from Berlin to Tokyo to London – continue to influence design and visual culture and inspire creatives. of Janelle Monae For Lady Gaga to Tilda Swinton and Raf Simons.
“Our new collection hub, the V&A East Storehouse, is the perfect place to bring Bowie’s work into dialogue with the V&A’s collection spanning 5,000 years of art, design and performance. My deepest thanks go to the David Bowie Estate, the Blavatnik Family Foundation and the Warner Music Group for helping to make this a reality and for providing a new sourcebook for the Bowies of Tomorrow.
We are delighted to announce that the exceptional archives of the legend @DavidBowieReal is coming to the V&A! Covering 80,000 articles over his 60-year career, you can explore Bowie’s work in a way never before possible at @vam_east Warehouse from 2025 #DavidBowieArchives pic.twitter.com/sTGtJnydKB
— V&A (@V_and_A) February 23, 2023
A spokesperson for the David Bowie Estate added: “With the integration of David’s work into UK national collections, he takes his rightful place among many other cultural icons and artistic geniuses. The David Bowie Center for the Study of Performance – and the behind-the-scenes access the V&A East Storehouse provides – will mean that David’s work can be shared with the public in ways that were not possible before, and we We are delighted to be working closely with the V&A to continue to commemorate David’s lasting cultural influence.
Bowie’s collaborator and friend, Tilda Swinton, said of the news: “In 2013, the V&A’s David Bowie Is… exhibition gave us incontrovertible proof that Bowie is a spectacular example of an artist, who has not only does unique and phenomenal work, but has influence and inspiration far beyond this work itself. Ten years later, the continuing regenerative nature of his spirit is growing increasingly in popular resonance and cultural reach across younger generations.
“By acquiring his archive for posterity, the V&A will now be able to offer access to the story of David Bowie – and the portal it represents – not just to practicing artists in all fields, but to everyone. between us, and for the foreseeable future.. This is very good news, which deserves the most sincere gratitude and congratulations to everyone who made this possible.
In 2018, the exhibition ‘David Bowie Is’ has been reimagined as a VR experienceafter it closed that year after being hosted in 12 cities over six years since its debut in 2013.