This book is a stunner! There are plenty of David Bowie photo books available, focussing on all aspects and periods of his career. Some are divine and some are, well to be honest, pretty rubbish and more like a 1980’s fanzine.
Photographer Frank Ockenfels 3, Collaboration is a breath-taking array of photographs of David Bowie taken during 16 photo sessions across the later part of Bowie’s career. The images showcase the evolution of Bowie’s iconic style, capturing his artistry, eccentricity, and deep humanity. They result from a close partnership—Ockenfels was not only one of Bowie’s key collaborators but also a long-time friend. As a close friend, Ockenfels had unique access to Bowie which allowed him to document the musician’s personal and professional life in ways few other photographers could. The photographs in this book, many of which have never been published, span the years they spent working together, from a 1991 session for the second album with Tin Machine, through to a cover of Q Magazine in 2006. The range of images include candid shots, iconic portraits, and contact sheets from working sessions.
It is hard to choose which of the sessions is most impressive. Many represent familiar albums spread from The Buddha of Suburbia, Outside, Earthling, Heathen to Reality and offer multiple variations on images familiar to fans. But then there are the sessions which are much more obscure, such as the roof-top session with Placebo for their joint Without You I’m Nothing song or The Berlin Project, where Bowie plays with his shadow on a wall, trying to capture the mood of early B&W movie classics. Ockenfels enjoyed playing with the camera to capture new textures, warping and blurring images to find something new which he successfully does and showcases page after paper.
At over 250 pages, this exquisitely presented hardback book earns its place alongside other notable Bowie photo books by the likes of Denis O’Regan and Mick Rock. In a word, stunning!
Collaboration: Frank Ockenfels 3 X David Bowie (Abrams) Out 4 November
