“The chorus of “No Control”, one of the outstanding tracks for the new album Outside, co-produced by Brian Eno, echoes around the sparse, hangar-sized photographic studio. Heavy, black curtains prevent the scorching Californian sun from entering this artificially-cooled, darkened environment. In the corner, against a stark white background, Bowie pulls apart his eyelids with his thumb and forefinger. His trademark stare, one dilated ‘cynical’ pupil, one expanded ‘childlike’ eye, takes on an exaggerated, forced life of its own. One half of him has been there, seen it, done it; the other half is still excited and enthusiastic about seeing new things.”


- Jefferson Hack, ‘The Changing Faces of David Bowie’, Dazed & Confused, Issue 14, 1995



Photographed by Rankin in 1995, this image of David Bowie was taken during the early years of Dazed & Confused (founded in 1991). Shot out in California, co-founder of Dazed, Jefferson Hack, interviewed the musical legend alongside Rankin capturing one of his musical heroes with the immediacy, closeness and challenging style for which he was becoming known. Printed in issue 14 of the magazine, these images of Bowie sat alongside profiles of the up-and-comers of the day, including The Chapman Brothers, Tim Burgess, from The Charlatans, and Jas Mann, from Babylon Zoo; exemplifying the wide cultural eye that Rankin brings to documenting and sharing popular culture. 

As Rankin recalls, “Bowie wasn’t deemed ‘cool’ at that time. I remember having to fight the Dazed team to make this shoot happen. ‘Genius’ is a term that gets bandied around a little too easily. But Bowie was a genius.” 

Bowie's Eye
From "The Changing Faces of David Bowie"
Dazed & Confused, Issue 14, 1995
Limited Edition Inkjet Print
20 x 24 inches
Edition of 500

Comes with signed Certificate of Authenticity

Rankin is a British photographer, publisher, and film director.

As a photographer Rankin's portfolio ranges from portraiture to documentary. He has shot The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner and The Queen to name only a few.

He is best known for work that is on the cultural cusp and leading future trends: producing rule-breaking campaigns for brands such as Rolls Royce, Unilever, L’Oreal and Samsonite; creating wide reaching projects for charities including Women’s Aid and Macmillan; and shooting music videos for the likes of Miley Cyrus, Rita Ora and Kelis.

As a publisher, Rankin co-founded the seminal magazine Dazed & Confused with Jefferson Hack in 1991, and has since published the likes of AnOther and AnOther Man, alongside over 40 books and the biannual fashion and culture print and digital platform, Hunger.

His photography has been published everywhere from his own publications to Elle, Vogue, Esquire, GQ, Rolling Stone, and Wonderland, and exhibited in galleries globally, including MoMA, New York, and the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

Rankin lives in London with his wife Tuuli and their dogs.
High quality archival inkjet printing allows for extraordinarily intricate colour management of images, as well as incredibly sharp detail, especially when hitting colour gamuts.

Rankin's inkjet pieces are printed on a Semimatte or silk paper finishes. Using a 10 colour large format professional Epson printer under the careful eye of the Rankin Studio team.