The display will open in the museum’s new East Storehouse in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, which will also feature a Glastonbury Festival exhibition, costumes worn by singers PJ Harvey and Sir Elton John, and vintage football shirts.
It will be the first of two V&A attractions opening in east London, with the V&A East Museum set to open in spring 2026, in the area which is being named East Bank.
The East Storehouse will open on May 31, 2025, while the David Bowie Centre will open on September 13, 2025, with both being free to visit.
V&A to open the David Bowie Centre
More than 90,000 items of Bowie memorabilia will be on display at the centre including the handwritten lyrics to Fame (1975), Heroes (1977) and Ashes To Ashes (1980), and examples of the “cut up” method of writing introduced to Bowie by the writer William Burroughs.
The centre will be spread across three zones, which will include curated displays, audio-visual installations and quieter study areas allowing visitors to view the Bowie archive on their own, from musical instruments to stage models.
Small displays will tell the stories behind the singer’s albums and also look at his multi-dimensional creative approach, including unrealised projects, collaborations, and influences.
It comes after the V&A acquired David Bowie’s Archive with help from his estate, the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Warner Music Group.
The storehouse will feature the Order An Object initiative, which will allow visitors to pre-book to see an item from its entire collection, including the Bowie archive, online.
More than 100 curated mini displays will also be on show from east London’s rich heritage of making, artistry and activism to recent acquisitions by fashion designer Imane Ayissi, photographer Mariette Pathy Allen and artists Xanthe Somers and Sanaa Gateja.
Objects will also include a fragment from Robin Hood Gardens, a former residential estate in Poplar, and the 17th century Agra Colonnade.
Tim Reeve, deputy director of the V&A, said: “The opening of V&A East Storehouse next May delivers on our ambition to create a new standard for access to national collections, in an area of London with such a rich creative heritage and vibrant and talented creative community.”
It will span four levels at the length of more than 30 basketball courts and will take over a large section of the former London 2012 Olympics Media and Broadcast Centre.
More than 70 new jobs will be created by the two new east London sites.
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Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “The opening of the V&A East Storehouse next year will be a wonderful addition to our capital’s cultural landscape.
“The working store will offer Londoners and visitors unprecedented free access to a wide variety of creative works, from Roman artefacts to modern-day music archives.
“It’s another hugely significant moment in the creation of our powerhouse for innovation, creativity and learning at East Bank, as we build a better London for everyone.”
The V&A’s main museum is located in South Kensington, while it also runs the Young V&A in Bethnal Green.
