Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll — Observatory's NFT Animation for Bowie 1976 with Shantell Martin and Playboy

https://vimeo.com/572569034

Bowie. Playboy. Shantell Martin. GLAAD. And Observatory as the animation studio. On paper, this is one of the most extraordinary creative collaborations in the studio's history — and in practice, it was just as remarkable to work on.

Bowie 1976 was a collection of three distinct, interconnected NFTs by Playboy x Shantell Martin, inspired by the September 1976 Playboy Interview featuring David Bowie, created as part of Nifty Pride — a landmark NFT collection in support of the LGBTQ+ community. The collection launched exclusively on Nifty Gateway on 29 June 2021, with all primary sale proceeds going to GLAAD.

Observatory's role was to produce the animation and augmented reality experience that accompanied Shantell Martin's visual reimagining of the iconic 1976 interview. Read Shantell Martin's full project notes here: shantellmartin.art — Bowie 1976.

The Three Themes: Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll

Bowie 1976 revolves around three classic themes that speak deeply to the Bowie ethos: Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll. Each NFT in the collection took one of these as its visual and conceptual anchor, with Shantell Martin's trademark hand-drawn linework reimagining the original Cameron Crowe interview text and Andrew Kent's archival photography from the session.

Observatory's animation layered movement, graphic design and AR capability onto this foundation — translating a still visual artwork into something kinetic, immersive and experiential. The AR experience was viewable through the Adobe Aero app, adding a spatial dimension to the digital artwork that allowed collectors to bring Bowie's presence into their own physical environments.

Ben Sheppee on the Project

Working on material of this cultural weight — Bowie, Playboy's archive, Cameron Crowe's words, Shantell Martin's artistry — required a particular kind of creative humility. "It's been a privilege to have freedom with these elements: the Playboy Interview, Bowie's words, Andrew Kent's original photos, and Shantell's intricate touches, and the space to interpret them with my own sense of graphics design and animation," Ben Sheppee said. "We had a clear idea of what we wanted to accomplish and it was particularly special working on the project with GLAAD in mind."

Observatory and Shantell Martin: A Continuing Relationship

The Bowie 1976 collaboration was part of an ongoing creative relationship between Ben Sheppee and Shantell Martin — one that has since extended to the Side by Side exhibition at Aures London in 2025, where Observatory's Lucid series was shown alongside Martin's work. The two practices share a deep interest in language, text, and the ways that mark-making can communicate beyond conventional meaning — making the creative connection feel entirely natural.

Sources: Shantell Martin — Bowie 1976; NFT Evening (June 2021); NFT Plazas (June 2021). Photography: Andrew Kent. Interview: Cameron Crowe, Playboy 1976.