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Leigh Bowery (March 26, 1961, Sunshine, near Melbourne - December 31, 1994 London) was an extraordinary homosexual performance artist and designer of outfits that might loosely be called clothes. He had a colourful exhibitionist career in 1980s London, making a name for himself by dramatic performances of dance, music and simple exhibitionism, while wearing bizarre and very original outfits of his own design. He was frequently seen performing in Taboo, a night club he operated near Leicester Square. A large man, he used his costumes to exaggerate his size and the effects were frequently overpowering for those who encountered him, the more so because of his confrontational style.
Bowery was painted in a series of nude portraits by Lucian Freud, and travelled internationally to the opening events of their exhibitions.
He married his long-term female companion Nicola shortly before his death from AIDS-related illness.
Bowery received posthumous exposure in the United States from the Broadway musical, Taboo produced there by Rosie O'Donnell, after running for 16 months in London's West End. Bowery's career is described more straightforwardly in a 2002 documentary The Legend of Leigh Bowery directed by Charles Atlas.
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