Tate Modern Unveils Major Retrospective on Leigh Bowery's Bold Legacy

The exhibition celebrates the provocative artist's impact on 1980s London nightlife, fashion, and performance art while drawing mixed responses to its scope and curation.

• The Tate Modern's 'Leigh Bowery!' exhibition opens February 27, showcasing over 50 of Bowery's iconic costumes alongside paintings, photographs, and videos documenting his influence on 1980s counterculture.
• Leigh Bowery, a Melbourne-born artist and nightlife icon, became a central figure in London's avant-garde scene, collaborating with figures like choreographer Michael Clark and painter Lucian Freud.
• The exhibition highlights Bowery's provocative performances, including his infamous onstage 'birth' act and his boundary-pushing exploration of identity, sexuality, and the body as art.
• Critics praise the vivid presentation of Bowery's flamboyant designs and archival material but note the show feels overly stretched with repetitive content and limited focus on his personal artistry.
• Bowery's legacy as a fearless cultural trailblazer is celebrated, but some question whether the exhibition's grand scale fully justifies his placement in Tate Modern's largest spaces.

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