Art Blog #39

Art in Focus; David Bowie and 'We can be heroes' by Sandra De La Cruz

Art details:

'Heroes'

Sandra De La Cruz

Print on Shiro Recycled paper 300gr 32x45 cm or dinA3.

Limited Edition of 50.

Numbered and signed by hand.

Framed

About Sandra De La Cruz

Sandra de la Cruz studied telecommunication engineering, but has always had a clear passion for drawing and the arts, that was instilled in her when she was still a child. She learnt how to express her emotions through art on her own. This year, within other works, she has made exhibitions, collectively and also individually, in different showrooms and “concept stores”, always revealing a personal and intimate work.

She has never put aside either the experimental side of her art with new techniques and themes, or her own personal projects.'

About David Bowie

David Bowie's life and music should be studied at universities, his impact as an artist is almost not matched or surpassed,, a true icon and musical genius and visionary. Do your own research.

The song itself....... Heroes

An art rock song that builds throughout its run time, "'Heroes'" concerns two lovers, one from East Berlin and the other from the West. Under constant fear of death, they dream they are free, swimming with dolphins. Bowie placed the title in quotation marks as an expression of irony on the otherwise romantic or triumphant words and music. Directly inspired by Bowie witnessing a kiss between Visconti and singer Antonia Maass next to the Berlin Wall, other inspirations included a painting by Otto Mueller and a short story by Alberto Denti di Pirajno.

Lyrics:

I, I will be king

And you, you will be queen

Though nothing will drive them away

We can beat them, just for one day

We can be heroes, just for one day

And you, you can be mean

And I, I'll drink all the time

'Cause we're lovers, and that is a fact

Yes, we're lovers, and that is that

Though nothing, will keep us together

We could steal time, just for one day

We can be heroes, for ever and ever

What d'you say?

I, I wish you could swim

Like the dolphins, like dolphins can swim

Though nothing, nothing will keep us together

We can beat them, for ever and ever

Oh we can be heroes, just for one day

Musicians:

David Bowie – lead and backing vocals, piano, ARP Solina String Ensemble, Chamberlin

Robert Fripp – lead guitar

Carlos Alomar – rhythm guitar

George Murray – bass

Dennis Davis – drums

Brian Eno – EMS VCS 3 synthesiser, guitar treatments

Tony Visconti – metal canister, backing vocals, tambourine

'Heroes' has greatly grown in stature in the decades following its release.

Pegg and O'Leary note that it was not until Bowie's performance of the song at Live Aid in 1985 that it became recognised as a classic

David Bowie's Eyes

In the spring of 1962, Bowie got into a fight with his school pal — and, later, lifetime artistic partner — George Underwood. Bowie, it seems, was in the throes of teenage love, and his best friend in school, Underwood, not only was crushing hard on a girl but found out Bowie was similarly enamoured with the same girl

As the story goes, Underwood wasn’t exactly pleased, and in fit of passion reportedly punched Bowie smack-dab in his left eye. “At first he [Underwood] thought I was kidding,” Bowie recounted to Spitz. “It wasn’t a very hard punch but obviously caught me at a rather odd angle.” Underwood’s fingernail had scratched the surface of Bowie’s eyeball, paralyzing the muscles that contract the iris.

When a person with typical, uninjured eyes stumbles into light, of course, their pupils contract and become smaller, showing more of their iris. In darkness, the pupils expand and do the opposite to allow as much light in as possible so you can get into bed without tripping over an errant object on the floor. In Bowie’s case, his left pupil remained permanently expanded, leading to his famous pair of blue and black eyes. Bowie was able to further use these to full effect thanks to his major case of red-eye, since photograph flashes bounced off his dilated pupil. And despite the fistfight, the boys’ relationship healed: The two became lifelong friends and artistic collaborators.

Various Sources