David Bowie and the Art of Music Video (New Approaches to Sound, Music, and Media)

The first in-depth study of David Bowie’s music videos across a sustained period takes on interweaving storyworlds of an iconic career. Remarkable for their capacity to conjure elaborate imagery, Bowie’s videos provide fascinating exemplars of the artistry and remediation of music video. When their construction is examined across several years, they appear as time-travelling vessels, transporting kooky characters and strange story-world components across time and space. By charting Bowie’s creative and collaborative process across five distinct phases, David Bowie and the Art of Music Video shows how he played a vital role in establishing music video as an artform. Filling a gap in the existing literature, this book shines a light on the significant contributions of directors such as Mick Rock, Stanley Dorfman and David Mallet, each of whom taught Bowie much about how to use the form. By examining Bowie's collaborative process, his use of surrealist strategies and his integration of avant-garde art with popular music and media, the book provides a history of music video in relation to the broader fields of audiovisual media, visual music and art. Cover Halftitle page Series page Title page Copyright page Dedication Contents Illustrations Acknowledgements Preface Format and structure 1 The Art of Music Video Music video scholarship The prehistory of music video Theatrical performance modes From visual music to audio-vision Surrealism Remediation Volatile audiovisuality A transformative media configuration Music video TARDIS Time is out of joint A collaborative artform Three phases of music video production Transmedia through and beyond narrative A transmedia navigator From storyworlds to intertexts Entering the TARDIS 2 Traversing Stage and Screen The London boy Counterculture and subculture From subculture to art and music Ushered onto the stage The mask of Pierrot Love You till Tuesday – the promotional film as compilation “Love You till Tuesday” – the song ‘Love You till Tuesday’ – the promo “Let Me Sleep Beside You” – the song ‘Let Me Sleep Beside You’ – the promo ‘The Mask (A Mime)’ “Space Oddity” (1969) – the song ‘Space Oddity’ (1969) – the promo Time travel and visual echo “Five Years” – the song ‘Five Years’ – the TV promo Denouement 3 Opening the Third Eye Mick Rock Mismatched eyeballs “John, I’m Only Dancing” – the song ‘John, I’m Only Dancing’ – the video40 “The Jean Genie” – the song ‘The Jean Genie’ – the video “Space Oddity” (1972) – the video “Life on Mars?” – the song ‘Life of Mars?’ – the video Mask, mime, gesture and gaze ‘Life on Mars?’ – other versions Denouement 4 Painting the Truth Bowie’s Berlin period Stanley Dorfman “Be My Wife” – the song ‘Be My Wife’ – the video Guitar love Painting with colour, sculpting with light “Heroes” – the song ‘Heroes’ – the video A statuesque figure of divinity David Mallet “Boys Keep Swinging” – the song ‘Boys Keep Swinging’ – the video ‘Boys Keep Swinging’ – Saturday Night Live (1979) ‘Look Back in Anger’ – the video ‘Space Oddity’ (1979) – the televised videos “Space Oddity” (1979) – the song ‘Space Oddity’ (1979) – the Mallet video Denouement 5 Future Nostalgia A new Art Decade Scary Monsters “Ashes to Ashes” – the song ‘Ashes to Ashes’ – the video Raking over the ‘Ashes’ Intertextual references Major Tom – the shape-shifter Pierrot – the time traveller Future nostalgia Characters and signifiers Metamorphosis I: entering the cocoon A music video couplet ‘Wild is the Wind ‘The Drowned Girl’ Metamorphosis II: leaving the cocoon 6 Eclosion “Let’s Dance” – the song ‘Let’s Dance’ – the video Red shoes and white gloves “China Girl” – the song Orientalism ‘China Girl’ – the video Critiques of ‘China Girl’ Imago109 Epilogue Contributions, insights and dangling threads Collaboration Creative process Artistic strategy Bibliography Index "This book tells the story of David Bowie becoming a medium for and an instigator of music videos, and how this shaped almost five decades of music videos to come"-- Provided by publisher