Hey, pals. Who's ready for another round of snowmageddon tomorrow? Jesus.
So this weekend the hubs and I took in the David Bowie exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum and wish I had better things to say about it. Although comprehensive, the space is not in any way conducive to such a canon of greatness. It felt cramped, cluttered, and completely disorienting. It was also about a thousand degrees in there, making it a challenge for anyone wearing a coat or not as skinny as the Thin White Duke himself. Awful. Just awful.
But what was amazing about the show were the performances being shown on monitors throughout. That was worth the price of perspiration.
It struck me that with someone as alien-like and bombastic as Bowie, a post mortem exhibit does not do him justice. Because you can look at all the amazing costumes, his Coke spoon, and some other artifacts, but without the man himself- it doesn't add up to much. At least for me, anyway. A friend said it best- the clothes did not make Bowie, Bowie made the clothes. It's hard to look at a museum show of his enormous contribution to creativity and bending the rules without realizing what a huge loss his death was to the world. I can't think of anyone more groundbreaking in terms of being so profoundly ahead of his time- from challenging us with notions of gender and sexuality to plugging into the zeitgeist before there even was one, Bowie was transcendent. I wish the show did not leave me so cold. The merch room is pretty good though. If you like expensive rock tees. I know I do. A weakness of mine for sure.
Anyway, wanted to fill you in on my take- the show's nothing without the showman, the star man.
Here's a few of those performances should you want to check them out.
Here he is seeming very, um, out of this world on Soul Train.
And this one on Dick Cavett
And the original Space Oddity with those teef and those hot chicks.
Oh and Star Man from Top of the Pops. Love.
And this Life on Mars. Eyeshadow. Copper hair. Oui et oui.
I wish I had liked the exhibit more, but the stage is really nothing without the show and that's that. For me the show is a miss. Because without him, it's really not the same.
Cause that's what's up this Bowie all day kind of Tuesday in the 212, Yours, in aliens and icons. XO