Vernon Dewhurst graduated from Regent Street Polytechnic School of Photography in 1966, and set up his studio in Dublin for a year. He then came back to London, working at the famous Studio Five in Mayfair shooting fashion and beauty. In London he shared house in Clareville Grove, South Kensington, with David Bowie whom he shot several times. One of his pictures became the cover of the famous “Space Oddity” album in 1969.

A few weeks after the shoot, Vernon moved to Paris where he worked for clients including Marie Claire, 20 Ans, Elle, Pierre Cardin, Yves Saint-Laurent, and photographed many French stars.

“I met David Bowie in 1967 or 1968 when I lived in a shared house in Clareville Grove, South Kensington”, Vernon remembers. “David had the room on the top floor with Hermione, his girlfriend. I would often pop up for a smoke and glass of wine and to hear his latest songs and it was there I first heard ‘Space Oddity’. David invited me to his Arts Lab in Beckenham, and I photographed him playing there. When he saw the photographs, he asked me to meet with Calvin Mark Lee at Mercury Records to talk about the cover to his second LP.”

“They both had this idea of David’s head appearing out of a Vasarely-inspired Op Art background, but weren’t sure if it could be done. I told them it could. David came to my studio in St. Michael Street, Paddington, and here we photographed the head shot. About three rolls of Ektachrome on a Hasselblad did it. David was a natural model, confident, relaxed, and fun to work with. I finally managed to create the finished montage after a few abortive attempts. It would have been so much easier now with Photoshop!”