Leigh Bowery

Leigh Bowery

Born: March 26, 1961
Died: December 31, 1994
in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Leigh Bowery was an Australian performance artist, club promoter, and fashion designer. Bowery was known for his flamboyant and outlandish costumes and makeup as well as his performances. Based in London for much of his adult life, he was a significant model and muse for the English painter Lucian Freud.

Movies for Leigh Bowery...

Queerama
Title: Queerama
Character: (archive footage)
Released: June 9, 2017
Type: Movie
Created from a treasure trove of archive, Queerama traverses a century of gay experiences, encompassing persecution and prosecution, injustice, love and desire, identity, secrets, forbidden encounters, sexual liberation and pride. The soundtrack weaves the lyrics and music of John Grant, Goldfrapp and Hercules & Love Affair with the images and guides us intimately into the relationships, desires, fears and expressions of gay men and women in the 20th century – a century of incredible change.
bee
The British Guide to Showing Off
Title: The British Guide to Showing Off
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: November 11, 2011
Type: Movie
Documentary about British artist Andrew Logan as he attempts to put on the 2009 edition of his Alternative Miss World. The film also presents a history of the contest (which has run eccentrically since 1972) which was set up firstly as an excuse to have a good party, but has grown into a celebration of alternative lifestyles and sexualities. The documentary mixes archive footage, animated inserts, with talking head interviews and a fly-on-the-wall look at the organisation of the 2009 event
bee
Kinky Gerlinky
Title: Kinky Gerlinky
Character: Self
Released: June 6, 2003
Type: Movie
Kinky Gerlinky was the biggest, most fabulous, most stylish nightclub London has ever seen. This documentary edited from over 200 hours shot on 21 nights, conveys the experience of one full night out at the club, and gains unique intimacy with most of the action directed to camera.
bee
The Legend of Leigh Bowery
Title: The Legend of Leigh Bowery
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: April 13, 2002
Type: Movie
Welcome to the over-the-top, extravagant world of Leigh Bowery, a key figure in New Romanticism and London nightlife in the 1980s. With his bizarre outfits, a mix of kitsch and fetish, and his eccentric performances, he influenced artists, musicians and stylists like Boy George, Lucian Freud (of whom he became the muse), Vivienne Westwood, Anthony and the Johnsons, John Galliano and David LaChapelle. Born in Australia into an intensely religious family and brought up in a Melbourne suburb, Leigh moved to London where he worked as a fashion designer and a promoter, and started the legendary disco club night "Taboo", the first outrageous polysexual party in London. The documentary offers a fully rounded portrait of this artist, including interviews with the people who knew him, who describe a complex, extreme, and ironic personality, a performer, actor and designer ahead of his time, from his difficult early life to international success, up to his death in 1994.
bee
Mrs. Peanut Visits New York
Title: Mrs. Peanut Visits New York
Released: September 7, 1999
Type: Movie
A video portrait of the legendary late performance artist, fashion designer and nightlife icon Leigh Bowery. Atlas's camera follows Bowery as he flamboyantly strolls through Manhattan's Meatpacking District, outrageously costumed in a self-made reinterpretation of "Mr. Peanut," the Planter's Peanut mascot. Bowery's molded full-bodysuit, accessorized with a floral print dress, top hat and transparent-heeled platform shoes, draws stares from onlookers. Peanut-related pop songs accompany him on the soundtrack.
bee
What's Your Reaction to the Show?
Title: What's Your Reaction to the Show?
Released: January 1, 1998
Type: Movie
Jewell's film gives us unique access to understanding a controversial work of art within its original context. In 1988, club legend Leigh Bowery installs himself behind a one-way mirror in a week-long residency at Anthony d'Offay Gallery in London. Each day he presents a look from his shocking repertoire, appropriating and revising styles and cultures. Jewell places his camera on the street to capture visitors exiting the gallery, inviting them to react to the show, in the moment. The range of interviewees is diverse, from students and gallery staff, to the cognoscenti from the worlds of art, clubs and fashion.
bee
Wigstock: The Movie
Title: Wigstock: The Movie
Character: Self
Released: June 9, 1995
Type: Movie
The three-decade-old annual Manhattan gathering of drag queens and their fans is portrayed in this colorful documentary. The film concentrates on the spectacle of the event, providing abundant examples of the elaborate costumes, flamboyant wigs, and campy musical performances that characterize the event.
bee
The Ghosts of Oxford Street
Title: The Ghosts of Oxford Street
Character: King George
Released: December 25, 1991
Type: Movie
Malcolm McLaren, writes, directs and narrates the "history" of Oxford Street. With musical performances by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl, Tom Jones, Sinead O'Connor, Happy Mondays and more.
bee
Because We Must
Title: Because We Must
Released: January 1, 1989
Type: Movie
The Michael Clark Dance Group perform to the music of T.Rex, Chopin, the Beatles and the Velvet Underground.
bee
Degrees of Blindness
Title: Degrees of Blindness
Released: January 1, 1988
Type: Movie
Inspired by a poem by William Blake: a short experimental film about the perception of vision.
bee
Hail the New Puritan
Title: Hail the New Puritan
Released: May 21, 1986
Type: Movie
A fictionalized portrait of the British dancer and choreographer Michael Clark, depicting a day in his life as he and his company prepare for a performance.