London's David Bowie Centre to open with 200 treasures from a 90,000-item archive

Published on 12/09/2025 - 8:14 GMT+2

London’s V&A East Storehouse is group to invited visitors into nan sparkling and glamorous world of David Bowie, celebrating nan life and activity of 1 of music’s astir gifted, enigmatic figures.

The David Bowie Centre has whittled down nan 90,000 artefacts acquired from Bowie’s property by nan Victoria and Albert Museum into 200 cautiously chosen treasures.

The archive occupies portion of nan V&A East Storehouse, a hybrid warehouse-museum that opened successful June successful eastbound London’s Olympic Park. As pinch nan storehouse arsenic a whole, visitors tin book appointments to spot immoderate of nan items for free – and successful galore cases grip them, nether supervision.

From Freddie Burretti’s Life connected Mars? suit, nan stunning asymmetric catsuit by Kansai Yamamoto for Ziggy Stardust, nan Union Jack frockcoat Bowie designed pinch Alexander McQueen for nan Earthling circuit to nan wings of nan Glass Spider era, nan David Bowie Centre spans decades of his ever-evolving aesthetic.

Harriet Reed, curator of Contemporary Performance astatine V&A East, emphasises nan breadth of nan collection: "The archive is an unthinkable wealth trove that spans his 50-year career, from, sketches that he's done, handwritten lyrics, costumes, instruments, moreover instrumentality art, merchandise, props, group models, everything you could perchance subordinate pinch Bowie."

Visitors tin marvel astatine Bowie's handwritten annotations connected nan first page of his philharmonic Lazarus, notes from nan signaling sessions of Low - nan first of his Berlin Trilogy pinch Brian Eno - and sketches for medium covers.

"The notes he made, nan to-do lists, things wherever he's making a grounds of nan exhibitions he wants to see, nan films he wants to see, books he wants to read, that benignant of devouring of civilization is really fascinating to cognize why he was truthful restlessly creative" says Reed.

Bowie donned and shed personas arsenic he moved done philharmonic styles, from glitter stone to soul, electronica and collaborations pinch British jungle and drum ‘n’ bass musicians, including A Guy Called Gerald and Goldie.

He besides acted successful movies and connected Broadway, collaborated connected shape shows, painted and embraced technology, mounting up a 1990s net work supplier called BowieNet.

The accumulation besides sheds ray connected Bowie’s unfinished ventures, astir poignantly "The Spectator" - an 18th-century philharmonic inspired by a notorious London outlaw, developed successful nan last months earlier his decease from crab successful January 2016 astatine nan property of 69.

Alongside this were plans for a shape adjustment of Orwell’s 1984 and a never-realised task group successful Mumbai titled Leon successful India.

Fittingly nan accumulation is designed to germinate - thematic displays will rotate each six months, ensuring that caller objects and stories proceed to emerge.

“We want visitors to beryllium inspired by Bowie, to prosecute their ain creativity, observe caller stories and make unexpected connections betwixt Bowie, modern discussions and themselves,” says curator Madeleine Haddon.

The David Bowie Centre opens to nan nationalist connected 13 September.