Sacred David Bowie @sacred-david-bowie - Tumblr Blog

I'm sharing my David Bowie-related projects

Hello everyone. I'm proud of this David Bowie-related project of mine. I've been putting it together for 2+ years. It focuses on Bowie's many talents and achievements.

Hillary Frasier Hays's answer: Photograph by Masayoshi Sukita, The Reality Tour. “Like the miraculous moon landing that inspired the song,

Many of my articles are sizeable. In the one on his vocal expertise, range, and versatility, I include 45+ notable vocal moments, with videos or audio recordings playable in-blog and set to exact min/sec marks. In the one regarding Bowie's songwriting talent, I include over 50 songs to show his versatility and innovation.

I'm fond of my article about Heroes, the song and the album. I look at how emotionally and theatrically diverse each of Bowie's fall of 1977 TV performances of Heroes were, including 14 later live performances of the song, linking interviews with Bowie, Visconti, plus others' articles, information about the title track's multiple sources of inspiration, the Roquairol hand movements footage, Nacho's Sense of Doubt studio footage edit, and much more.

My Low article is quite detailed too, although would be longer if I hadn't maxed Quora's allowable length.

I'm most proud of the work I've done looking into Bowie's 100+ music genres and subgenres that he either composed in, or included select elements of in certain compositions, as well as the 30+ instruments he could play. Brookbee here generously helped with my genre and subgenre research during 2024.

There's an expanded version of the genre lists at the above Quora hub which includes song examples of each. I may need to trim the list of genres and subgenres slightly, but I think most of the attributions are defensible.

I also have a longer list pertaining to his instruments where song examples for each are listed.

I had also been working on a project to identify all the genres and subgenres Bowie either enriched the existence of or influenced the development and evolution of, plus musicians who were influenced and inspired by him. The project is not complete, however:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTZUxg_90Oe6BgLLmRqwoXJZUJ4U07XZhgntmGZpNI3EfivsBkSm8GOm2pzLTUrQsyYfNm5kMuHaKQl/pub

Prior to 2025, I made expressive Midjourney images of Bowie, ending this endeavor in 2024. At that time, most AI images didn't really look like Bowie, and none that I saw ever really felt like him or conveyed anything of his energetic presence, either.

I don't claim that my depictions have the value of traditional art, but I do think they're surprisingly emotive for the medium, and even though I no longer have a Midjourney account and do not intend to make any more of these, I do remain proud of this collection. The link to the collection as displayed in Google is above.

Despite not being traditional art, they are heartfelt. Some of them even bring tears to my eyes.

David Currie was kind enough, too, to include three of them in his 2024 book, The Grand Illusion of David Bowie.

Recently, I was also working on compiling a list of all the professional and candid photographers who photographed Bowie. I don't have the credentials or connections to do anything meaningful with this project but am slowly researching their contributions. If anyone knows of any photographers I'm missing, I would love to hear who they are. Currently the list is at 591 professional photographers and 48 candid photographers, including professionals who took candid shots. This is where I keep the list updated: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DmPoXxASM/

48 people who took candid photos of Bowie:

1. Allen Brand (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie) 2. Andy Warhol 3. Angie Bowie 4. Anton Perich (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie) 5. Bill Wyman 6. Brian Eno 7. Bruce Vartan Boyajian 8. Carlos Alomar 9. Chris Beat 10. Corinne/Coco Schwab 11. Dana Gillespie 12. Duncan Jones 13. Edna Walsh 14. Eric Hausch (candid by Bowie's bodyguard) 15. Esther Friedman 16. Freddie Burretti 17. Geoff MacCormack 18. Harrison Funk (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie) 19. Iggy Pop 20. Iman 21. Janez Pelko (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie) 22. Jim Henson 23. Jimmy King (professional who took candid photos of Bowie) 24. Joanna Stingray 25. Kansai Yamamoto 26. Kenneth Pitt 27. Kevin Armstrong 28. Lars Halter (fan candid) 29. Linda McCartney 30. Maggie Hunt 31. Mark Adams/TotalBlamBlam/Total Blam Blam/Blammo 32. Mark Plati 33. Martin Cohen 34. Michael Ochs (professional who took candid photos of Bowie) 35. Mina Brodie 36. Paul Shep 37. Paul Smith (designer, shop owner) 38. Pete Post (fan candid) 39. Peter Katsis (fan candid) 40. Phil Backhouse (fan candid) 41. Robert Rosen 42. Sharon Smith (pro nightclub photographer/candid photographer) 43. Sterling Campbell 44. Steve Schapiro (professional who took candid photos of Bowie) 45. Tilda Swinton 46. Tim Whitnall 47. Tony Visconti 48. Yasuko (Yacco) To the below list of 588 professional photographers I need to add: Michael Brito (2003) = 589 Jennifer Jeffrey (1997) = 590 Claude Gassian (1976) = 591

A poetic prose reflection about Bowie I wrote:

Thanks everyone.

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

Do you have another accounts to follow you? Instagram, Fb? I love your work and David Bowie 🙋🏻

Hello, thanks for your comment & your praise!😊 On IG I'm hillary_fh. I don't have much of a following there and the account is a lot about other interests of mine, but I would love to see you there, thanks!

Something happened on the day you died. This image with made w/ Midjourney, Canva, and my whole heart. 10 years of unending tears. No photographs were uploaded or relied upon. Bowie forever. 😭

#david bowie #bowieforever

Happy New Year everyone! I so wish David Bowie was still here with us, happy and healthy, to enjoy it himself.

This was made with Midjourney AI and 45 years' worth of my adoration. Yes, I know it isn't hand-wrought. But it does come from my heart. And I didn't make it to be art. I make these because when those sublime eyes of his materialize before me on the screen, for just one sweet whisper of a moment, it feels like he's alive again.

#david bowie #bowieforever

These are some new Midjourney David Bowie depictions of mine. I ceased to bring them forth for a year or so. Then, I realized it had been such a lovely way for me to feel connected to Bowie, as foolish as that may seem. Yet these were never about me trying to be an artist of any sort. I just so adored to see him come alive on the screen. Especially the ones where he's gazing at the viewer. I also figured that if AI depictions are going to be made of Bowie, at least let them seek to honor him, to convey not only his physical likeness but also something of his inner essence, and to make ones he wouldn't dislike, even if he generally otherwise disliked being represented by the medium. I didn't upload any photos of Bowie for reference. As before, I spend hours honing one image so that it feels as true to him as possible. Sometimes I initially think they do, but then change my mind and decide that they don't. These are my others: https://bit.ly/My-David-Bowie-Midjourney-Depictions-by-HFH I'm also still working on identifying as many of Bowie's photographers as possible. I keep the lists updated on Facebook. Currently my list of professional photographers equals 591 individuals. I've only identified 48 candid photographers. If anyone knows of anyone I've neglected to mention, I'd be happy to hear from you: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1DmPoXxASM/

#david bowie #bowieforever #midjourney

The short form of something I wrote about David Bowie last year.

Photo by Samuel Bayer, 1995

#david bowie #bowieforever

Hello everyone. I haven't posted here in a while. I've been curious for years though whether David Bowie might be the most photographed person in history, so I'm currently working on a project trying to identify ALL of his professional, candid, and professional/candid photographers. My current count is at 562 professional photographers, where every team of two photographers are counted as individuals, however, I need to add these 3: Arnaud Meyer (1996)=563. Franziska Krug (1995)=564. Fredrik Hjerling (1996)=565

Eventually, I'll create categories for photographers who led photo shoots vs. those who captured concert shots, or images from other circumstances and settings. This is where I keep the lists updated: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16Z9oBj7yf/

I'll post updates in the comments and would appreciate learning the names of anyone I've neglected to acknowledge.

My beginning list of candid or professional/candid photographers is at 45:

1. Allen Brand (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie)

2. Andy Warhol

3. Angie Bowie

4. Anton Perich (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie)

5. Bill Wyman

6. Brian Eno

7. Bruce Vartan Boyajian

8. Carlos Alomar

9. Chris Beat

10. Corinne/Coco Schwab

11. Dana Gillespie

12. Duncan Jones

13. Edna Walsh

14. Eric Hausch (candid by Bowie's bodyguard)

15. Esther Friedman

16. Freddie Burretti

17. Geoff MacCormack

18. Harrison Funk

19. Iggy Pop

20. Iman

21. Janez Pelko (professional who took a candid photo of Bowie)

22. Jim Henson

23. Jimmy King (professional who took candid photos of Bowie)

24. Joanna Stingray

25. Kansai Yamamoto

26. Kenneth Pitt

27. Kevin Armstrong

28. Lars Halter (fan candid)

29. Linda McCartney

30. Maggie Hunt

31. Mark Adams/TotalBlamBlam/Total Blam Blam/Blammo

32. Martin Cohen

33. Michael Ochs (professional who took candid photos of Bowie)

34. Mina Brodie

35. Paul Shep

36. Pete Post (fan candid)

37. Peter Katsis (fan candid) 38. Phil Backhouse

39. Robert Rosen

40. Sharon Smith (pro nightclub photographer/candid photographer)

41. Sterling Campbell

42. Steve Schapiro (professional who took candid photos of Bowie)

43. Tilda Swinton

44. Tim Whitnall

45. Tony Visconti

I will also create a category for professional photographers who took P5laroid test shots, images which appear candid but can't be categorized as candid in the traditional sense.

It may not be possible to prove that Bowie was the most photographed person ever, but, if it hasn't already been accomplished, I would love to help develop a comprehensive compendium of EVERY David Bowie photographer, professionals from at least 1962 forward, providing bios for each + circumstances, locations & fascinating details re: each instance of that photographers' work with Bowie. If copyrights would not permit inclusion of a selection of their photos per occasion, then at least it would be lovely to gather the above information.

I had an initial list of photographers I obtained from a 'Deep Research' query on ChatGPT, then I added to that thanks to the help of others with additional knowledge. I've now gone through the 100 pages of photos of Bowie on Getty Images. That's 20,809 Bowie photos! It's a good thing he was so beautiful, lol, because I wouldn't want to look at 20,809 photos of anyone else on this planet, especially inside of a matter of hours!

ChatGPT's 'Deep Research' will now search only specifically requested credible sources, making them clickable and even highlighting pertinent sections of the citations, so it is far more accurate and reliable as a research tool than it was previously. I actually already learned about a third of these photographers and their works, but did so in a disorganized manner, so if I continued down this path, I'd probably need to repeat my research efforts.

I'm going to continue the search, looking through sites such as Alamy, Shutterstock/Rex, and lots of social media fan pages, but I realize I don't have the credentials or means to do anything with this information. I was hoping fans could come together to work on this project but I'm not sure if there's interest. I think it would be a beautiful way to honor Bowie, but also to thank and honor the hundreds of photographers who captured images of Bowie for fans to cherish throughout the years to come.

I had hoped to separate the list into categories, such as those who were Bowie's photographers for professional photo shoots vs. those who professionally photographed Bowie at concerts or other events and settings. I hope to learn to use Excel and make a spreadsheet.

I also wanted to do some detective work to try to figure out who might have been employed by certain agencies and taken photos of Bowie during specific years, matching names to photos where only the agency names, not the photographers' names themselves, are credited with the images. I'm finding quite a few uncredited images. If I had been fortunate enough to photograph Bowie, I would surely appreciate being acknowledged for such, even if that credit were to be granted posthumously. So, I'm keeping a separate list of agency names.

The title of 'most photographed' is sometimes bestowed upon royals, however ChatGPT stated that Queen Elizabeth had a core group of 10–15 royal photographers but may have been photographed by 80–100 others. I can imagine though that sittings for royal photographs might involve fewer shutter clicks than would dynamic photo shoots for someone like Bowie. During his 2003 Steven Klein photo shoot, for example, crew members quote that there were “well over a thousand clicks” to to nail its 16 final frames.

This is my humble Bowie blog, which isn't a blog as much as it my attempt to create a centralized hub of information regarding many of David Bowie's creative talents and achievements. I started it so as to have a means to show those who are unfamiliar with, or who negate, Bowie's genius, a bunch of reasons why he was so extraordinary:

https://www.quora.com/Who-is-the-greatest-rock-star-of-all-time/answer/Hillary-Frasier-Hays

#david bowie #bowie #bowieforever #bowielove #davidbowiephotographers

My Picks for Some of David Bowie's Most Important Songs

I saw a thread on another platform about people's choices for most important David Bowie songs. Many important songs were mentioned. I added some that hadn't been. I mentioned additional songs too, but this is already really long. These were my choices:

"It's Gonna Be Me": A song that Tony Visconti speculated was too personal for Bowie to include on Young Americans. "That’s one of the best things [on The Gouster]," Visconti argued. "I think he left it off because...well, I don’t know the story, but he said it was just too personal. He didn’t want to live with that song on that album, coming back to haunt him." It's also one of the most incredibly passionate Soul/R&B performances and masterpieces of the genre songwriting I've ever heard in my life. Plus, having once myself been left to weep over a hotel breakfast tray, it just hits really hard.

I believe Visconti's quote is from the interview: 'It Was Too Personal' How David Bowie’s The Gouster Was Lost’ Mojo, August 05, 2016. I may stand corrected on something, because I had assumed that both "It's Gonna Be Me" and "Who Can I Be Now?" were left off the Young Americans album due to Visconti's speculation that Bowie may have felt they were 'too personal', but from what I can tell, Visconti in this interview may have been primarily referring to "Who Can I Be Now?" My sense is that "It's Gonna Be Me" comes across as being the more intensely personal of the two songs, but I could be wrong. I previously saw Visconti's quote at https://ultimateclassicrock.com/david-bowie-gouster-stream/ and there it seems to reference "It's Gonna Be Me".

"Word on a Wing": "It was the first time I'd really seriously thought about Christ and God in any depth and ‘Word On A Wing’ was a protection. It did come as a complete revolt against elements that I found in the [TMWFTE] film. The passion in the song was genuine. It was also around that time that I started thinking about wearing this (fingers small silver cross hanging on his chest) again, which is now almost a left-over from that period." https://bowiegoldenyears.com/press/80-09-13-nme.html…

"Always Crashing in the Same Car": “That night everything came to a kind of a spiritual impasse, you know? And I really was down in a hotel garage, and I started going round and round, just like a movie I’d seen. I thought, ‘Oh, this is so Kirk Douglas in that film [Two Weeks In Another Town] where he lets go of the steering wheel.’ [laughs] You can tell what kind of condition I was in. Or what condition my condition was in. So I started going round and round, faster and faster. And then I let go. And as I let go I ran out of petrol. I just slowly came to a stop! I thought, ‘Oh God, this is the story of my life.’ As it happens, things picked up after that! [laughs] —David Bowie, BBC Radio Theatre, 27 June 2000

Neuköln: I read that Bowie said he felt it was his finest saxophone playing on record. https://bowiesongs.wordpress.com/2011/05/26/neukoln/… I'm not a musician but I can't imagine any professional sax player could do it better. "I found I didn’t have a very good relationship with the sax and that lasted right the way through. We’re sort of pretty embittered with each other. It lies there waiting for me to touch it. It defies me to (laughs). I really have to go through traumas to get anything out of it that has anything to do with what I want it to say. So it’s not a steady relationship; it’s not a good one." - David Bowie, 1983 (“Bowie’s Saxophone Struggle,” Steve Weitzman, Musician). In my view, Bowie must have infused his sax with a whole lot of trauma in "Neuköln", either his own trauma, or that of the "isolation of Turkish immigrants in a harsh city that used them solely for labor, or a musing on Islam in the West (Bowie’s sax does appear to imitate a muezzin call at times), or the fate of a faceless, nameless individual living in the cradle of the Cold War", according to Chris O' Leary, or both.

I also came across this interview with Donny McCaslin where he paraphrases Bowie describing his own sax playing as conveying 'the passion of John Coltrane and the technique of Bill Clinton'. As I said, I'm not a musician, but my sense is that Bowie may have been needlessly humble regarding his talent as a saxophone player: https://www.youtube.com/live/9u8FHJax1U4?si=WWuKVUrKZ7C-rdjF&t=1538

It's No Game (Pt. 1): I picked this one because of how Bowie enlisted Japanese singer Michi Hirota and encouraged her to defy cultural and gender norms by delivering the song lyrics with fierce intensity. Her unsettling vocal style sets the tone for Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps), and what he does with his own voice thereafter is unlike anything he'd done before. How to categorize his vocal style? It's not exactly shouting, shrieking, screaming, wailing, howling, or caterwauling. I don't think there's a word for it, except for what Bowie apparently himself called it, which was 'Bowie Histrionics': "He told Hirota to say the words like a Samurai from a Kurosawa film – SAY IT LIKE A MAN! She got it! Afterwards she came back into the control room, her cheeks flushed with empowerment. Later David matched her prose, singing in what he called ‘Bowie Histrionics’". https://bowiebible.com/songs/its-no-game-no-1/2/…

The Motel: I chose this song because it's so emotionally raw, moving, and courageous, and because one of its inspirations may have been related to Bowie's and Brian Eno's visiting the Guggin psychiatric hospital in Austria in 1994. https://bowiebible.com/songs/the-motel/… "In early ’94, for example, we went to the Guggin mental hospital just outside of Vienna, where some of the famous old outsider artists lived and worked. Some of them have been in the painters’ wing for, like, thirty years, as an Austrian experiment to see what happens when you allow people with mental disabilities to give free rein to their artistic impetuses. Before you get to the outsiders’ wing, there’s this other wing you pass through where all the psychos and murderers live, and the only thing written on the wall is THIS IS HELL. But the painters’ wing is coloured with graffiti everywhere. They paint all the trees surrounding their wing – everything is painted! To see it against the starkness of this other wing next door is really hard-hitting. We were both very affected by this experience."

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

This is the last Midjourney image of David Bowie that came through before I deleted my Midjourney account.

I was trying to convey the "Heroes" period. I did not give Midjourney reference photos of Bowie in the creation of this image. And It isn't an automatic process. I made dozens of attempts before this one came through. I do feel that my AI depictions of Bowie are more emotive and truer to him than other AI images I've seen. But I don't make these for money. It's just a way I can feel connected to him. I cherish those moments of sudden heart-gripping inhale and hair standing up on the back of my soul when I've whispered, "There you are..." and tears flood my eyes...

Hopefully, the next Bowie image I share will be another hybrid piece, melding my AI and my emerging traditional artistic talent, as I show in the image below. Thanks.

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove #ai art

I'm late posting this here. But it is meant to be a Happy Heavenly Birthday gift to David Bowie.

People who dislike the use of AI in art might not like appreciate this idea, but the above image is a melding of one of my Midjourney AI-assisted depictions of David Bowie with traditional art. What I did was print a Midjourney image on cardstock paper, then I painted over it and drew over it using actual acrylic paints and colored pencils.

I once had some natural artistic talent, but since I haven't drawn or painted in decades, I felt this technique could serve as a bridge between the two mediums, or perhaps as a bridge from AI back to traditional art. I might be onto something here. I'm excited!

I do also want to announce that I've now deleted my Midjourney account. I feel I've proven what I set out to prove with it, that the technology can be engaged with to bring forth heartfelt images which convey their subjects authentically and are imbued with the emotions of the people who collaborated with AI to create the images. AI mirrors the depth that we give to it.

119 new items · Album by Hillary Frasier Hays

Now that I look at the finished hybrid project though, I think it did come out looking very 'Diamond Dogs'-like. However, I don't think the original Midjourney image looks very much like that album cover, so this is apparently just what my eyes and hand wanted to do.

It's actually ironic because the first image of Bowie I ever tried to draw (in high school in 1981) was the cover of that album. It was my first Bowie record. I even braved the art room, 'where all the cool girls hung out', to draw it, which was a big deal for a shy girl like I was. As I recall, the drawing turned out pretty well. In any case, I didn't plan to make the Midjourney image look more Diamond Dogs-like during the overpainting process. It just seems to have happened that way.

I'm shocked that I didn't absolutely destroy the Midjourney image with my clueless strokes and dabs, but somehow instead managed to bring out its best aspects. I have no idea how that happened because every step of the way I could hear my inner critic saying, "That will never work. You're doing it all wrong. You have no idea what you're doing. This is a waste of time. You have no natural talent. But even on the off chance that it if turns out well, people will still mock you and insult you and say it's not real art, that it can never be real art because so-called 'artificial' intelligence was involved at the start.”

Gee thanks, inner critic. On a happy note, my Caliart acrylic paint set has 24 shades and I noticed that blending the colors felt strangely intuitive. I had purchased a set of 48 Prismacolor art pencils and some art markers in the past too, so I really am set up in terms of supplies. I suppose I could buy better quality paintbrushes though. I have another image in mind to try next.

But I do worry this is beginner's luck and that I'll not have similar success the next times I try. But at least I've shown myself that this hybrid approach is possible. Maybe I'll never have the natural talent to approximate and replicate the contours of a person's face, the shape of their ears, the appearance of their features, but I'm halfway there at least, and just the act of studying the colors and daring to put the paintbrush to paper felt like an act of courage, with inner critic softening and admitting that this idea was a surprisingly good one and that maybe I need not knee-jerk presume I'm going to fail when I try new things.

The image at the very bottom of the series is the original Midjourney image.

_____________________

Below are 119 of my favorite Midjourney depictions of David Bowie. Many of them I am hoping will be suitable to overpaint/overdraw as I’ve done above. Some of these bring tears to my eyes. There is that moment of a sharp, sudden, heart-gripping inhale and hair standing up on the back of my soul when I've whispered, "There you are...":

A Selection of my David Bowie depictions—by Hillary Frasier Hays & Midjourney AI. I created these images with respect & reverence, not for profit, but to feel connected to Bowie in spirit. While I don’t equate them with traditional art, I feel they may convey more of a sense of emotional authenticity than other AI depictions I've seen.

This is my Quora Bowie blog which focuses on identifying and celebrating Bowie's many talents, feats, and achievements: https://bit.ly/The-Brilliance-of-David-Bowie-blog

Below is the original Midjourney AI image before I painted over and drew over it. I think I much improved it. Incidentally, in the making of this Midjourney image, I did not offer photographs of Bowie to Midjourney as a reference. I don't use reference photos in any of them. Only in the very beginning I did.

Happy Heavenly Birthday, Starman. I've been posting about you all over Twitter, Reddit, and Facebook but I missed you here. 🙏

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

In 1980, I was 15. Iconic film director Michael Powell of "The Red Shoes" (1948) fame came to Dartmouth College to teach a class. He chose me to play Arha, based on Ursula K. Le Guin's novel "The Tombs of Atuan". Film buffs may like to see the 16-min documentary: https://collections.dartmouth.edu/archive/object/DA223/da223-mp692

#film #cinema #cinephile #michael powell

This beautiful lyric from Bowie's "Never Get Old" has been on mind lately. Hopefully, this is a worthy tribute on which for it to appear. This image was co-created with Midjourney. I don't provide photos so these take dozens of tries before one comes through that begins to convey him. #BowieForever ⚡ https://photos.app.goo.gl/9r81ZQdUs8ZpiX1t6

121 new items · Album by Hillary Frasier Hays

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove #ai art

115 of my Midjourney Bowie depictions are now on Google Photos + I offer an explanation below of the intensive process involved in their creation. https://photos.app.goo.gl/9r81ZQdUs8ZpiX1t6 Bowie forever!

I've now uploaded 119+ of my favorite Midjourney David Bowie depictions to Google Photos. As a Bowie fan since 1981, I do bring deep reverence to the creation of these images.

Yes, all the images you see here were made possible through AI technology, but my goodness, they still take countless hours—especially when one considers that maybe only 1 in 200 or more of the images that come forth look enough like Bowie to even be worth working with. Then, there’s the post-processing time in Canva, often required because Midjourney so strongly associates the iconic Aladdin Sane album cover image with Bowie that most of the images include full or partial lightning bolts. Other imperfections in need of correcting also arise, and Canva is where I add any text as well.

In fact, if Midjourney is not offered a detail-rich prompt encouraging it to explore other representations of Bowie, it almost always defaults to portraying Aladdin Sane. I've posted screenshots here in the past attesting to this fact.

I do not reference photographs or others' artistic depictions of Bowie in the creation of my own.

In my view, AI image generators act as 'language cameras.' Rather than perceiving their subjects with physical eyes, AI envisions the words in text prompts, translating and transforming them into visual artistic representations. The descriptions themselves are integral in shaping Midjourney’s vision.

It’s fair to say Midjourney has learned the general contours of Bowie’s face, as well as his ears, the length of his neck, and his eyebrows. However, it often struggles with the nuances of his nose—one of the most uniquely beautiful noses ever to grace this Earth—and the width of his eyes, sometimes placing them slightly too far apart. The AI's familiarity with Bowie's facial features isn’t enough though; consistently rendering them in perfect proportion to one another remains a complex challenge, even for advanced artificial intelligence.

And then there's the question of emotion. I aim not to present hollow digital caricatures of David Bowie but to use this technology to convey as much of his essence as possible. I’m reminded of French poet and essayist Charles Baudelaire though, who in 1859 criticized cameras as mechanical tools incapable of capturing emotion or soul. Yet today, despite the camera's mechanical nature, its ability to convey the emotional essence of its subjects is rarely disputed.

In the case of my Bowie depictions, Midjourney isn’t automatically conjuring images out of thin air which perfectly resemble him. It’s not like putting a quarter in a gumball machine and receiving a jawbreaker. Instead, the process resembles more of a Claw Machine, except the prizes aren’t fixed. They exist as if in a state of quantum superposition, morphing through countless possibilities until the exact moment the prompt executes and collapses the wave function, yielding a set of four images.

In my view, AI relies on the language it’s given to 'see' images into existence—like giving sight to a person without eyes. The user's words are its eyes. In this way, art assisted with AI is a true collaboration. The technology dynamically interweaves the input it’s given, refracting and re-envisioning it into a synthesis that foundationally reflects its previous training, but also relies upon its interpretive capabilities, as well as the creator’s intent—a unique transmutation and amalgamation of co-creation.

I wish more than anything I could have the talent to draw and paint by hand. I did recently purchase acrylic paints, a tabletop easel, acrylic paper, and art pens, but I simply don't have natural talent. I know what I do isn't comparable to the beautiful works of handmade, traditional artists. But I would like people to understand that my experience of engaging with AI to create these images is more complex, interactive, collaborative, and time-intensive than I think many may suppose it to be.

Thank you so much to those of you who have liked recent Bowie depictions of mine! Your appreciation means the world to me!

My Bowie depictions are just one of the ways I celebrate David Bowie though. I'm also very proud of my Quora blog wherein I research and discuss his many genius talents and achievements: https://www.quora.com/Who-is-the-greatest-rock-star-of-all-time/answer/Hillary-Frasier-Hays

Bowie isn't my only interest into which I'm integrating AI-augmented creativity. I'm also constructing two languages with ChatGPT o1 and creating songs from linguistic passages using Suno AI. At this time, each language has two full chapters of curriculum:

https://bit.ly/Welcome-to-Færnlithæl-A-new-ChatGPT-o1-constructed-language

and https://bit.ly/ChatGPT-o1s-Shalári-A-Complete-Guide-to-The-Language-of-the-Dreamshapers

Thanks!

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove #ai art #ai

This is one of my earlier Midjourney Bowie depictions, from January 2024. My first attempts date back to April 2023. This one is so luminous and gentle. The original, though, had some unnecessary scribbly lines on it that I just now was able to remove. I didn't use any photographs as a reference for this image.

I've shared screenshots here before showing that when Midjourney is asked to 'create a painting of David Bowie', with no descriptors offered, most of the time what it does is generate a close likeness of the iconic Aladdin Sane album cover. So, MJ definitely knows and associates that image with Bowie.

Coaxing Midjourney to create images that do not depict Aladdin Sane requires some creative effort. But then, most of what does come forth thereafter ends up not looking enough like him. I'd say maybe 1 in 250 end up being acceptable to show.

Bowie forever!

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove #ai art

https://qr.ae/p2Bk3c I really like this blog article of mine. Every time I encounter one of those "best singers" lists on social media & Bowie isn't on it, I get really cranky. So I put this together to showcase his vocal genius. Are there any songs I should add, and if so, at what min/sec marks? Quora allows up to around 60 videos. I'd love feedback!

https://qr.ae/p2Bk3c

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

...what is it about this clip from "Cracked Actor"? I will be forever grateful to Alan Yentob for it. Because every single time I view, I instantly smile ear to ear, and then, within the first :23 seconds, I realize once again that my eyes have filled full with brimming tears...

...and of course, there she is, the most radiant Coco Schwab, who must surely be one of the most fortunate women ever to have graced this planet Earth...

The full video: MrTheInnerCircle's YouTube channel: Cracked Actor - A film about David Bowie (FULL DOCUMENTARY) 4:46.8 - 5:38.7

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

I redid this project this week. It's a rather emotional writing tribute to David Bowie. Some people might think it's excessively poetic, although imo, his fans experience his loss in varying ways and degrees. I'm especially fond of the paragraphs, "Bowie, like a seasoned gardener..." and "Bowie was the miracle who had never been and had always needed to be..."

#david bowie #bowieforever #bowie #bowielove

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