David Bowie - the Icon

If you haven't checked out the latest "David Bowie Is" installation at the MCA, make the time to find your way to downtown Chicago to experience this opportunity first hand. Bowie is known as one of the worlds most influential and pioneering performing artists of his time. I say performing artists because of the fact that much of what Bowie did was not just in music, but in the stage act he portrayed to his audience. It was an art form, much like what we see with performers like Lady Gaga today. He created a personality for himself that was unmatched at the time and has influenced a broader creative audience, not only within music, but also within design, art and theater.

Organized chronologically, David Bowie Is traces the artist’s evolution from his years as a teenager in the 1950s to the early 2000s when he retired from touring. Before the surprise release of the 2013 album The Next Day, Bowie had not released an album since Reality in 2003. On display are more than sixty stage costumes including the Ziggy Stardust bodysuits (1972), designed by Freddie Burretti; Kansai Yamamoto’s flamboyant creations for the Aladdin Sane tour (1973); and the Union Jack coat designed by Bowie and Alexander McQueen for the Earthling album cover (1997). Bowie’s many personae are amply documented through photography, graphic designs, models of concert sets, visual excerpts from films, and live performances.

Photography by: Dwight Bejec

If you are a Bowie fan, definitely check out the "David Bowie Treasures by: Mike Evans. It's a beautifully curated hardcover text that is sure to inspire and invigorate the visual artist in you.  David Bowie Treasures, through beautiful photographs and unique memorabilia, illustrates Bowie's journey from humble beginnings to world superstardom. It contains beautiful reproduction of show fliers, concert stubs and posters. You can pick up a copy here.

Tickets on sale now for the Bowie Is exhibition!
Individual tickets are $25 for adults and teens, $10 children (age 7–12), and free for children 6 and under. Price includes museum admission.

Admission to the museum without David Bowie Is access is $7 (free for children 6 and under).