More than two years after London’s Victoria and Albert Museum acquired the extensive David Bowie archive, the late artist’s collection of fashion, photos, art and writing is being made available to the public. This week the new V&A East Storehouse will open a dedicated David Bowie Centre, where visitors can view, inspect and even access 90,000 items, including self-portraits, sketches, costumes and his own artist’s palette.
From the launch tomorrow, September 13, two special exhibitions will feature a bespoke Peter Hall suit worn by Bowie during the Serious Moonlight tour; elaborate handwritten lyrics for ‘Win’, from the 1974 album Young Americans; Mick Rock photos showing Bowie in intimate recording sessions; his idea to adapt George Orwell’s 1984; and personal correspondence between Bowie and producer Nile Rodgers. After touring the displays, visitors can book one-on-one time with items from the archive.
‘This archive offers an extraordinary lens through which to examine broader questions of creativity, cultural change and the social and historical moments during which Bowie lived and worked,’ says Madeleine Haddon, curator of the V&A East. ‘Bowie embodied a truly multi-disciplinary practice… reflecting the way many young creatives today move fluidly across disciplines and reject singular definitions of identity or artistry. For Bowie fans and those coming to him for the first time, we hope the Centre can inspire the next generation of creatives.’
Access to the David Bowie Centre is free and ticketed. The archive is one of more than 1,000 archives held by the V&A, including that of the Glastonbury Festival and Vivien Leigh.
Colour slide of David Bowie applying makeup as Ziggy Stardust.
Sketch for film project Diamond Dogs, by David Bowie, 1974. © The David Bowie ArchiveTM.
Aladdin Sane jacket, designed by Freddie Burretti for David Bowie, 1973. Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Sketch for film project Diamond Dogs, by David Bowie, 1974. © The David Bowie ArchiveTM.
Cut-up lyrics Bowie used for song ‘Blackout’ from album Heroes (19 pieces), 1977. Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Contact sheet of recording session for ‘Dead Man Walking’ music video from album Earthling, directed by Floria Sigismondi, 1997.
Asymmetric catsuit David Bowie wore as Ziggy Stardust designed by Kansai Yamamoto, 1973. Courtesy of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Manual for the EMS Synthesizer, 1977.
Contact Sheet, Aladdin Sane album cover, 1973. © Duffy Archive & © The David Bowie ArchiveTM.

