The Bowie estate’s Bowie80 campaign brings Nordstrom shops, a Rock Hall takeover, new photography and a Philip Glass symphonic show, starting now and running through 2027.
Most people get a birthday cake. David Bowie gets a huge year-long festival in his honor.
On Monday (Oct. 5), Bowie’s estate launched Bowie80, a year-long celebration of what would have been his 80th birthday on Jan. 8, 2027. Bowie was born David Jones in London on that date in 1947 and died in January 2016, two days after his 69th birthday. The program covers exhibitions, concerts, merchandise, archive projects and fan experiences, with more announcements promised.
Nordstrom is bringing Bowie-themed shops to its flagship stores in Seattle, New York and Chicago, as well as online—meaning shoppers can now buy a Ziggy Stardust outfit somewhere between the shoe section and the coffee bar. In Cleveland, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame will host a Bowie80 pop-up from mid-November through January at its museum store, online and at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport; during his birthday weekend, the Rock Hall will offer talks, trivia, music and photo ops, with a photo exhibition planned for a later date.
Opening in early February 2027 at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in New York and West Hollywood is “Strange Fascination,” a photography exhibition. In spring 2027, Copenhagen will premiere “BOWIE (breaking) GLASS,” a symphonic production linking Bowie’s songs with the music of Philip Glass—a fitting pairing, since Glass wrote symphonies based on Bowie’s albums Low and “Heroes.” Meanwhile, touring exhibitions include the immersive David Bowie: You’re Not Alone, heading to Manchester, Brighton and Hamburg’s Port des Lumières, and the V&A’s David Bowie: On Tour, drawn from his archive of about 90,000 items, which opens in Dundee and then travels to Blackpool and other U.K. cities. Finally, 4 Plaistow Grove, the house where young Bowie wrote many of his earliest songs, is set to open to the public in 2027 after restoration.
Ten years after his death, Bowie is still one of the most effective brands in music, and Bowie80 is a reminder that legacy artists aren’t just catalogs. They’re ongoing projects, with retail partners, touring exhibitions and new audiences who weren’t born when Blackstar came out.
He sang about ch-ch-changes. Eighty years in, he’s still the one making them.
Sources: Variety · SPIN · Rolling Stone Canada · Far Out · Happy Mag
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