Three rare images of David Bowie by celebrated photographer Kate Garner have been released by a Hampstead gallery to mark what would have been the icon's 73rd birthday.
The signed images are all that remain from a 1995 Los Angeles shoot which saw the singer tied up with ropes, suspended from the ceiling in bandages, and put inside a giant tube.
Garner's entire photograph collection was stolen from storage 12 years ago, but a friend rescued these fragments of the shoot by keeping a handful of prints and negatives in his London studio.
Now they can be seen courtesy of Zebra One Gallery to mark Bowie's birthday on Jan 8.
Photographer-turned-singer, Garner explains: "I was never a crazy Bowie fan but after spending an afternoon with this magician, I found him to be one of the most amazing humans I have ever met. He was incredibly charming and had researched who I was and discovered that I had worked with his friend and producer Tony Visconti, who said that David was one of his favourite artists to work with. He even learned the words to my songs and sung them to me over the lunch table, while staring directly into my eyes. He also showed me photographs of his paintings and asked me to give a critique. This, along with the fact that he had a translucent beauty at the age of 47, made him pretty hard to resist.”
The shoot was for two different magazine covers in one afternoon, and both Esquire and Raygun wanted creative control. But Bowie made the experience as easy as possible, by allowing Garner to suspend him from ropes and put him inside a tube.
She adds: "The only request David balked at was me photographing his naked back from behind, because he had scoliosis. After we had finished he asked if I wanted to do another, more intimate, easy-going session and did I want to photograph Iman, his wife? Yes please! At that time I lived in an old 40's apartment in LA with beautiful light. I envisioned photographs of him on the white bed with sunlight pouring in over his white skin. I
asked the Face magazine if they would be interested in sponsoring the session. They declined saying he had
'sold out!’ Unbelievable. So, the second session never happened."
Gabrielle Du Plooy, owner and curator of Zebra One Gallery in Perrin's Court adds: “We’re so excited to be able to share this amazing piece of history. To celebrate what would have been his birthday, these three rare images are being sold exclusively through us, with gold and pink editions as well as black and white.”
https://zebraonegallery.com/
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