May 17, 2016
When I photographed the young man in today’s featured image I immediately thought of David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, although by that time Bowie had already morphed to the Thin White Duke. He was a musician I always liked – except for the Major Tom phase – for his intelligence, his risk taking and his embrace of change. His death this January, then, was saddening although comforted by the album he released chronicling his last journey, called Blackstar.
( Music here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kszLwBaC4Sw)
Chuck Conelly, the great American painter, is now working on a series of Bowie portraits, the first one (below) painted shortly after the death of the musician. Conelly had withdrawn from public view for a quarter of a century after major conflicts within the art- and gallery world, living as a recluse in Philadelphia. Only last year did he start to show work again. He had met with Bowie some 30 years ago; I assume the portrait was not simply from memory. It surely captures some of the luminosity surrounding the artist. Here is a short intro to the painter: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2997525/The-return-Chuck-Connelly-America-s-greatest-modern-artist-spiralled-control-upsetting-Scorcese-Saatchi-1980s-New-York-sober-selling.html
Steve Tilden
I haven’t paid much attention to David Bowie, likely because I grew up playing folk music. I like a simple guitar, some deft finger work, and such. So after listening and watching the entire Black Start piece, my deepest impression was how it made religion and the process of dying so menacing. So accurate. But it saddened me.
So immediately afterward I repaired to my guitar, tuned it to ‘slack key’ (taro patch), and played the Dylan song If Today Was Not an Endless Highway. I’m all better now.
Martha Ullman West
I’m struck by how modern the Bowie portrait, um, isn’t! That looks like 19th century, turn of the 2oth century portraiture to me, and reminds me too of portraits by Gwen John. Thanks for making me think more about just what portrait painters, the good ones, do, and how they do it, Friderike, keep ’em coming!
friderikeheuer@gmail.com
Will do! Although it is really tricky to find good matches….