David Bowie's House in Berlin: A Residence of Legend
An article about the house where David Bowie lived during the creation of his famous 'Berlin Trilogy.'
At Hauptstraße 155 in Berlin stands an unremarkable building that nonetheless draws attention due to its history. From 1976 to 1978, the legendary musician David Bowie lived in a seven-room apartment on the first floor.
The building is a typical Gründerzeit structure with a cement stone entrance and a massive oak door adorned with cast-iron floral ornaments. The door has two keyholes set at a 90-degree angle, characteristic of early 20th-century 'pass-through' keys. Unfortunately, the door is defaced with graffiti, and the surrounding area is dirty.
Someone had placed real roses into the metal flowers of the door; by late February, they were already withered. These were a tribute to Bowie, possibly placed on his birthday (January 8) or the anniversary of his death (January 10).
During this period, Bowie was recovering from drug addiction that had dominated his life in Los Angeles. At the same time, it was a highly creative phase: he produced three iconic albums—'Low,' 'Heroes,' and 'Lodger'—collectively known as the 'Berlin Trilogy.' In 1976, Bowie was emaciated, surviving only on milk, cocaine, and cigarettes, suffering from depression, and his marriage to Angie was falling apart.
His move to Berlin was driven by the strange, isolated location of the divided city, his fascination with the Weimar Republic, Bertolt Brecht, and the Brücke painters, as well as creative input from avant-garde bands like Can, Kraftwerk, and Neu!
The story of renting the apartment is interesting: landlady Rosa Morath had evicted a previous tenant, a lawyer involved in the APO (student protest movement), who had painted all seven rooms black and wanted to start a commune. Afterwards, an agent contacted her to rent the apartment to a British artist.
