Sternenmenschen. Bowie in Gugging. Und Berlin

In the organizer's words:

In September 1994, David Bowie spent two days visiting the Lower Austrian state mental hospital in Gugging, where artistically gifted patients who are now considered to be the most important representatives of Art Brut lived in the "House of Artists". He was actually looking for inspiration for his work on the album "Outside" (1995), but what motivated his interest in the complex of schizophrenia and art was his tragic relationship with his half-brother Terry, who committed suicide in a psychiatric ward in 1985.

In"Sternenmenschen", Uwe Schütte takes an essayistic tour de force into the unanswerable question of how we became who we are and what role pop music plays in this.

Comic artist Reinhard Kleist knows better than almost anyone how to translate pop music into graphic novels, especially when these have a connection to Berlin. In Berliner Mythen (2016), he explores the cultural psychogeography of the city; Johnny Cash - I See A Darkness (2006) and Nick Cave - Mercy On Me (2017) were followed by Starman - David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust Years (2021) and Low - David Bowie's Berlin Years (2024).

The discussion with Uwe Schütte, moderated by journalist Maximilian Schäffer, will focus on Bowie's music, especially the legendary Berlin Trilogy and Outside, as well as approaches to approaching the exceptional artist David Bowie in the form of essayistic prose and graphic novels.

Uwe Schütte, author and private lecturer, regularly visited the Haus der Künstler in the 1990s and almost bumped into Bowie there.

Reinhard Kleist, comic artist with a focus on pop music, including "Starman - Bowie's Ziggy Stardust Years" (2021) and "Low - David Bowie's Berlin Years" (2024).