david bowie is

cover shoot for aladdin sane photographed by brian duffy, makeup by pierre laroche, 1973.

david bowie in striped bodysuit for aladdin sane tour by kansai yamamoto photo by masayoshi sukita, 1973.

photo collage of manipulated film stills from the man who fell to earth, 1976.

bowie (davie jones) in the kon-rads photographed by roy ainsworth, 1963.

self portrat adopted for album cover of heroes, 1978.

david bowie & william burroughs photographed by terry o'neill handpainted by bowie, 1974.

the thin white duke during the station to station tour by john robert rowlands 1976

in coat designed by alexander mcqueen for earthling album cover photographed by frank w. ockenfels, 1997.

the v&a has been given unprecedented access to the david bowie archive to curate the first international retrospective of the extraordinary career of david bowie - one of the most pioneering & influential performers of modern times. david bowie is will explore the creative processes of bowie as a musical innovator & cultural icon, tracing his shifting style & sustained reinvention across five decades.

the v&a's theatre & performance curators, victoria broackes & geoffrey marsh have selected more than 300 objects that will be brought together for the first time, including handwritten lyrics, original costumes, instruments, films, music videos, set design & album artwork.

the show begins 23 march running through 28 july, 2013.