The last time we touched upon David Bowie, we traced his musical evolution through his hair. Now, Ziggy Stardust shines at the David Bowie exhibition, which has made its way from London to Berlin—just as Bowie did—adding a new bunch of stuff in Bowie’s city of inspiration.Opening this week on May 20, the Martin Gropius Bau museum will showcase never-seen-before postcards between Bowie and Marlene Dietrich from 1978, original artwork by German expressionist Erich Heckel, secret police files from riots around Bowie’s concerts, and much more.Some of Bowie’s best work was made in Berlin. The secret seems to have been his formula for finding a hideaway in West Berlin, where he wasn’t mobbed by fans (unlike in LA). He disappeared in the German capital and got working on the albums better known as the Berlin trilogy, Low (1977), Heroes (1977) and Lodger (1979), which were written and recorded in part in Berlin.During his time in Berlin Bowie's avant-garde side emerged thanks to German minimalism, the city's fantastic museum selection and everything else that was going on at the time—including an amazing raft of friends and artists. The exhibition is filled with goodies from the Bowie archive with over 300 items, including handwritten lyrics, news clippings, photographs, and endless mannequins decked out in original Bowie costumes (sometimes you feel like you’re inside of a huge walk-in closet). To name a few there's the Ziggy Stardust jumpsuit by Freddie Burretti, the Kansai Yamamoto’s striped bodysuit from the Aladdin Sane tour from 1973 (which looks a lot like a Frank Stella painting), and the Alexander McQueen Union Jack coat from the cover of Earthling. While the show is heavy on style, retracing the career of a legend, the exhibition also included set designs, live footage, album artwork and of course, instruments.
Where to begin? Noisey spoke with Martin-Gropius-bau curator Christine Heidemann who dished about Bowie, Berlin, and the biggest challenge in putting a show like this together.
Bowie contact sheet circa Heroes.
Bowie and William Burroughs.NOISEY: There is a special Bowie and Berlin room, which is new to the exhibition?
Christine Heidemann: When it was clear that they would come here, they decided to extend the section of the show about Bowie’s years in Berlin because they were so crucial for him. They asked me to curate this extension of the show. There has been a section of Bowie’s years in Berlin already, but it will be larger now. There is new stuff being added to the show.What can we expect to see?
London's Victoria and Albert museum exhibition focused on Bowie’s three Berlin albums, Low, Lodger, and Heroes. I thought it would be interesting when you see the show here in Berlin if you could connect more to the city when you’re viewing the show. The Martin Gropius Bau museum as you arrive at Potzdamer Platz, that’s nearby where the Hansa Studios were, Bowie recorded some of his music there and it looked completely different in his day. I tried to focus on this and this is the motivation and inspiration that brought him here, as well as the places that were important for him while he was here in Berlin. German expressionism was one main motivation for him to come to Berlin, we are so proud to show we are showing two works from the Brücke Museum here in Berlin. This is a real highlight. Bowiewent to the Brücke Museum a lot. He painted and drew while he was here. There are many paintings and drawings inspired by Bowie here, as well as traces of it in his Heroes cover. We are also showing a woodcut by Erich Heckel called Portrait of a Man. All the relations will become clear when you see the painting with the album covers.
Bowie's lyrics.Bowie was pals with Marlene Dietrich, do you have anything to show their friendship?
Bowie and Dietrich were both in a film, Just a Gigolo, which was shot in Berlin and in Paris in 1978. It’s sad that they never actually met on set. Bowie was in Berlin, Dietrich was in Paris. They sent postcards to each other and we have some of those to show. They’ve never been shown.What photos are shown?
We’re also showing a large collage of photos which come from the David Bowie archive, which were taken by friends like Coco Schwab when they were here. They also show David Bowie in Berlin and the places that were important for him, it’s like a mind map. It makes it easy to relate to certain places they see in the photos. They can discover them when they stop out of the museum, too.What was it about Berlin that brought out his avant-garde personality?
Bowie lived in LA before moving here. He had a tough time. He was exhausted and it was a time when he took many drugs. This is not a focus on the show but it was a hard time for him. He needed a place to relax. It was Berlin. He had a connection to German expressionism and the golden 1920s. He was interested in Berlin in a very special and historical and political situation after the war. He imagined West Berlin as a quiet island where could relax where he could live a bit more in disguise or not as a superstar, as he did in LA.What is a really memorable moment of Bowie in Berlin?
There is going to be a focus on one concert from 1987 which was a big concert in front of the Reichstag with different bands like Genesis and David Bowie, who sang "Heroes," people listened to it from the other side of the Wall. It was a really big concert. It was the 750 year anniversary of Berlin which was mainly celebrated in West Berlin and many people were coming to Brandenburg Gate from the other side, East Berlin. There were some riots on the east side and it shows how important Berlin stayed for Bowie when he left and didn’t live here anymore. It was an impressive event in the history of Berlin. There will be material from the GDR secret police, the Stasi. It’s not directly on Bowie but on all the things that occurred on the concert that happened on the Eastern side, TV reports talking about the concert and those sorts of things. This brings it away from just the 1970s.
Bowie has always had ties to fashion, what was it that made him an icon?
There are a lot of costumes, his suit from Thin White Duke and other stuff. The focus is a lot on fashion and David Bowie and a character and a figure who is constantly changing.For those of us who haven’t seen it yet, what’s the main focus of the show?
The main focus is on the 1970s and 1980s. It’s a very special show on the things you hear, in particular. You walk around the show with headphones. You hear interviews, explanations of certain objects, you hear songs, films, and there is the film Where Are We Now? It is not only about the past. [Laughs]. This is the main thing.What was the biggest challenge in putting this exhibition together?
For me, the biggest challenge was to not only add something but to add a dialogue to something that is already there. It’s an extension of the show, but more Berlin-specific, so the city is an important aspect. The show in general focuses on Bowie as a person in a hundred disguises, but I wanted the surrounding to be more visible and to make it possible to connect more with the city.The Stasi files are incredible!
On one hand they’re super boring, super bureaucratic style. It was just two years before the Wall came down. Bowie’s concert was one week before Ronald Regan told Gorbachev “Mr. Gorbachev, take down this Wall.” It was a time when many things were moving.
The David Bowie exhibition opens at Martin-Gropius-bau in Berlin from May 20 to August 10, 2014, tickets here. It continues on to Chicago and Paris in 2015, if you’re looking way ahead.
A model of the stage set for the Diamond Dogs tour 1974.Nadja is on Twitter and you should really follow her - @nadjasayej.Related:
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Go See The Punk Rock Girls Film Series at BAM
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Christine Heidemann: When it was clear that they would come here, they decided to extend the section of the show about Bowie’s years in Berlin because they were so crucial for him. They asked me to curate this extension of the show. There has been a section of Bowie’s years in Berlin already, but it will be larger now. There is new stuff being added to the show.What can we expect to see?
London's Victoria and Albert museum exhibition focused on Bowie’s three Berlin albums, Low, Lodger, and Heroes. I thought it would be interesting when you see the show here in Berlin if you could connect more to the city when you’re viewing the show. The Martin Gropius Bau museum as you arrive at Potzdamer Platz, that’s nearby where the Hansa Studios were, Bowie recorded some of his music there and it looked completely different in his day. I tried to focus on this and this is the motivation and inspiration that brought him here, as well as the places that were important for him while he was here in Berlin. German expressionism was one main motivation for him to come to Berlin, we are so proud to show we are showing two works from the Brücke Museum here in Berlin. This is a real highlight. Bowiewent to the Brücke Museum a lot. He painted and drew while he was here. There are many paintings and drawings inspired by Bowie here, as well as traces of it in his Heroes cover. We are also showing a woodcut by Erich Heckel called Portrait of a Man. All the relations will become clear when you see the painting with the album covers.
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Bowie and Dietrich were both in a film, Just a Gigolo, which was shot in Berlin and in Paris in 1978. It’s sad that they never actually met on set. Bowie was in Berlin, Dietrich was in Paris. They sent postcards to each other and we have some of those to show. They’ve never been shown.What photos are shown?
We’re also showing a large collage of photos which come from the David Bowie archive, which were taken by friends like Coco Schwab when they were here. They also show David Bowie in Berlin and the places that were important for him, it’s like a mind map. It makes it easy to relate to certain places they see in the photos. They can discover them when they stop out of the museum, too.What was it about Berlin that brought out his avant-garde personality?
Bowie lived in LA before moving here. He had a tough time. He was exhausted and it was a time when he took many drugs. This is not a focus on the show but it was a hard time for him. He needed a place to relax. It was Berlin. He had a connection to German expressionism and the golden 1920s. He was interested in Berlin in a very special and historical and political situation after the war. He imagined West Berlin as a quiet island where could relax where he could live a bit more in disguise or not as a superstar, as he did in LA.What is a really memorable moment of Bowie in Berlin?
There is going to be a focus on one concert from 1987 which was a big concert in front of the Reichstag with different bands like Genesis and David Bowie, who sang "Heroes," people listened to it from the other side of the Wall. It was a really big concert. It was the 750 year anniversary of Berlin which was mainly celebrated in West Berlin and many people were coming to Brandenburg Gate from the other side, East Berlin. There were some riots on the east side and it shows how important Berlin stayed for Bowie when he left and didn’t live here anymore. It was an impressive event in the history of Berlin. There will be material from the GDR secret police, the Stasi. It’s not directly on Bowie but on all the things that occurred on the concert that happened on the Eastern side, TV reports talking about the concert and those sorts of things. This brings it away from just the 1970s.
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There are a lot of costumes, his suit from Thin White Duke and other stuff. The focus is a lot on fashion and David Bowie and a character and a figure who is constantly changing.For those of us who haven’t seen it yet, what’s the main focus of the show?
The main focus is on the 1970s and 1980s. It’s a very special show on the things you hear, in particular. You walk around the show with headphones. You hear interviews, explanations of certain objects, you hear songs, films, and there is the film Where Are We Now? It is not only about the past. [Laughs]. This is the main thing.What was the biggest challenge in putting this exhibition together?
For me, the biggest challenge was to not only add something but to add a dialogue to something that is already there. It’s an extension of the show, but more Berlin-specific, so the city is an important aspect. The show in general focuses on Bowie as a person in a hundred disguises, but I wanted the surrounding to be more visible and to make it possible to connect more with the city.The Stasi files are incredible!
On one hand they’re super boring, super bureaucratic style. It was just two years before the Wall came down. Bowie’s concert was one week before Ronald Regan told Gorbachev “Mr. Gorbachev, take down this Wall.” It was a time when many things were moving.
Tracing David Bowie's Musical Evolution Through His Hair
Prince Has Ruled In The Style Stakes For Four Freakin' Decades
Go See The Punk Rock Girls Film Series at BAM