David Bowie, Mr Jones’ Long Hair – David Bowie exhibition in Hôtel de Lagoy

We can be heroes, Terry

Much has been written and said about David Bowie—whether in his glam guise Ziggy Stardust, the bewildered Aladdin Sane, or the decadent Thin White Duke. But little to nothing has been said about Terry Burns, without whom Bowie might never have been that plethora of reincarnations, nor the artist most admired by generations of musicians across the planet. Besides being Bowie’s (half) older brother, Terry was the one who introduced David Jones to worlds from which, once entered, you never really leave: Beat literature, 17th- and 18th-century English poetry, cinema, theater, postwar Expressionism and abstract art, as well as the best rock ’n’ roll of the 1950s.

A historic place for a unique and captivating story

For Bowie, Terry was his best friend, confidant, and the curator of what over the years became the creative arsenal of the world’s biggest rock star. It is precisely through Terry’s eyes and voice that the magnificent, unmissable exhibition “David Bowie, Mr Jones’ Long Hair” is presented at the Espace Hôtel de Lagoy in St Rémy de Provence. We had to go back twice—the show proved so pleasantly intense and immersive, out of the ordinary. Forget the “dusty museum” format: this is the equivalent of walking hand in hand with Terry through the life and work of his chameleonic, famous brother.

The pupil surpassed the master—in one of life’s ironies, Terry faded after succumbing to a mental illness, a sequel to his experience at the war front. That absence and, at the same time, the fear of being prone to the same madness, spurred—rather than destroyed—his brother.

Sound and Vision: with each decade, a look and a beat

The selection of photographs is more than spot on: Philippe Auliac, with an intimate lens that still preserves the distance every rock star imposes. Markus Klinko, with a “larger-than-nature” gaze that captures, like few others, the wild side behind the cerebral Bowie. Michel Haddi, who elevates with the glamour and serenity that only the French Riviera can confer on the tormented spirit of any artist seeking refuge among sun, palm trees, and luxury hotels. And finally, Denis O’Regan who, besides being the rock icon’s trusted photographer, was also his friend—a mutual trust you can feel in the images.

Bowie in Provence—naturally

We had the privilege of attending the auction of Bowie’s personal art collection at Sotheby’s more than a decade ago. So when we learned of this singular proposal to travel through Bowie’s life and work with commentary by David Lawrence, we set off on a glam-rock pilgrimage to St Rémy de Provence. But who would think to bring Bowie’s complex, subversive, hedonistic universe to a rural, peaceful corner of painterly transcendence like this Provençal village? Maison Templar, of course—curator and collector of select, inspiring biographies of great figures who made history. A “match made in heaven,” as one would say today. How well the Hôtel de Lagoy serves as a backdrop to a journey through the creative process of one of the most prolific artists in history. It’s no coincidence that its 18th-century resident, Jean-Baptiste Florentin de Meyran, Marquis de Lagoy, was an eminent collector of drawings of the period. And Bowie knew how to collect art like few others—reinventing himself as person and artist as he updated his magnificent selection of Rothkos, Damien Hirsts, Kokoschkas—with a special mention for Lynn Chadwick’s Teddy Boy and Girl—among others.

For Van Gogh, an asylum; for those of us who love Bowie, a party

The peace and calm that Van Gogh found when he lived in St Rémy de Provence can be felt throughout the venue and its surroundings. A radiant light generously bathes every wall, every street, every square—might Terry’s tormented spirit at last have found the solace he so needed? We have no doubt that he did, and that he would have loved to walk through this unforgettable exhibition with us. Without that grain de folie—that “little madness”—there would have been nothing of what is the most addictive discography in the history of rock. Between demons and paradises, we choose to lose ourselves in the world of Terry and David—never to leave. And with the same playlist that wafts through every space of the beautiful, Bowie-esque Hôtel de Lagoy.

ôtel de Lagoy

ST RÉMY DE PROVENCE