In their fine-bound limited edition, the authors have opened up Sukita's archives to assemble
a 300-page photo essay which, captioned with their own recollections and memories, traces the development of Bowie's remarkable career from 1972 to the present day.
Meeting in the early seventies, by 1980 Sukita had photographed Bowie on nearly 20 separate occasions. A connection was formed such that over the ensuing decades Sukita's camera has never been far from the focal point of Bowie's life and work.
Present at both private rehearsals and centre stage for some of Bowie's most spectacular performances, Sukita's lens has also preserved informal moments - a subway ride in Kyoto, or a birthday party celebration with Iggy Pop - as well as studio portraits created during countless sittings together.
Over the course of more than 300 pages Sukita and Bowie trace their forty-year story through extended captions in both English and Japanese, informing many of the greatest images the authors have created together.
The book is housed in a hand-made slipcase bound in black buckram featuring pink, silver and turquoise foils and fine-grain leather accents on the top and tail edges of the slipcase. The book has silver page-edging and two ribbons that denote the synergy between photographer and artist and their respective cultures.
Inset onto the front cover is an acrylic mirrored plate featuring an outtake image from the Heroes session.
Over 80% of the photographic selection has never been seen or published. They are printed to the highest quality and presented with Bowie and Sukita's words throughout, written in English and Japanese. The narrative thread of SPEED OF LIFE begins in London, 1972, and continues through to the present day.
Masayoshi Sukita: 'I received a call from Kyoto, where Bowie-san was staying. He had already made himself a local. We went to a local market, rode the local trains and went out to a disco at night. Most of the people around him were unaware of who he was...'
David Bowie: 'The best way to get to know a city is to count up how much change you have in your pocket and take the subway as far as that amount gets you. I did that several times on my last stay in Tokyo in 2004.'
