The Shock of Mortality
Within 24 hours of this image being taken Bowie had a stroke. He was unaware of the photographer, so we have a moment of quiet reflection. Maybe a moment where he is reconciling the conflicting nature of his life; elevated to a godliness yet staring mortality in the face. The background is deconstructed newsprint. The written word is to communicate, so by reducing it to an indecipherable pattern it raises the question of confusion.
At this time I had no fixative, so was reduced to spreading PVA glue over the chalk pastel. Thus I had very little control over the coloured aspects of the image. Being inorganic, the glasses are solid black to emphasise the difference.
