BOWIEVIRUS: David Sims

ICA Theatre

Free entry 

In October 2012, Arena Homme Plus magazine hit the newsstands declaring "BOWIEVIRUS", with an iconic cover image created by David Sims, a montage of rock'n'roll star Vince Taylor, a fashion model, and – what appeared to be - David Bowie. Within the pages of the magazine, artists and photographers referenced, reworked and recontextualised the star, reigniting Bowie's persona for a new audience. For the ICA, BOWIEVIRUS will take physical form through the presentation of selected works and reinterpretations by David Sims from this celebrated issue. This will be David Sims' first solo exhibition in the UK in fifteen years and will consist of a series of new works that further develop the images and ideas originally addressed in the issue.

Having emerged as a key figure in the London creative scene of the early Nineties, photographer David Sims has consistently pioneered in contemporary image making. Creating immaculate yet energetic photographs that eschew simple narrative, Sims works both within and far beyond the established fashion world tradition. From his editorial work for a variety of magazines past and present including Vogue, The Face, i-D and Arena Homme Plus, to his idiosyncratic advertising campaigns for a host of clients including Yohji Yamamoto, Jil Sander, Calvin Klein, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, and Prada, Sims' photography is proving to be equally a benchmark and a modern day enigma, appearing in the permanent collections at the Tate Modern and the Victoria & Albert museum.