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Have you ever looked at a blank wall in your house and thought, ‘you know what that needs, a giant photograph of David Bowie holding a wolf on a chain’? Then you’re in luck, because celebrity photography Markus Klinko has announced that he’ll be selling his entire archive of images at auction, and giving 10 percent of the proceeds to NHS Charities Together.
The auction is part of the Taglialatella Galleries’ Art for Relief campaign, which was set up to raise funds during the Covid-19 crisis. Among Klinko’s polished collection of A-lister shots are stylised portraits of Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Kate Winslet and Naomi Campbell.
The most recognisable are his photographs of David Bowie from the singer’s last large-scale photoshoot, which was inspired by the work of Man Ray. The photos were for the cover of Bowie’s 2002 ‘Heathen’ album, but Klinko only released the full set of images last year, for the exhibition ’Bowie Unseen’.
The shoot took place just after 9/11. Speaking about his experience of photographing Bowie during that period, Klinko said: ‘That strange, post-9/11 period felt so much like today. Bowie was a symbol of hope and he was the face of the NHS Heroes campaign, so it felt fitting to make his image the lead piece for the auction.’
Along with the auction, the gallery will be selling 12 editions of the David Bowie photograph ‘Smoking’ for £1,500 – so you can imagine what the originals will go for. But the more they sell for, the bigger the chunk of change for NHS charities, so let’s hope some rich bidders are itching for an impulse buy.
The auction will run until Apr 22. Find out more at Taglialatella Galleries’ Instagram or website.
More of a window shopper? Go on a virtual tour a London gallery.