The famed art exhibition "David Bowie Is" opened at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art this past Tuesday, and features more than 400 items spanning the musician's career - including instruments, costumes, set designs, and handwritten lyric sheets. According to the Rolling Stone, the massive exhibition allows visitors to take a look into Bowie's personal life and cultural impact while being accompanied by high-tech, location-detection-enabled sound.

The museum's synopsis of the exhibit reads as follows: "Bowie's work has both influenced and been influenced by wider movements in art, design, theater, and contemporary culture, and the exhibition subsequently focuses on his creative processes, shifting style, and collaborative work with diverse designers in the fields of fashion, sound, graphics, theater, and film.

Multimedia installations incorporating advanced sound technology produced by Sennheiser, original animations, continuous audio accompaniment, and video installations immerse visitors in the sights and sounds of Bowie's artistic life. 'David Bowie Is' was organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and has embarked on an international tour with the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago as the only US venue."

According to Wired, when the exhibit first debuted in London, it attracted more than 70,000 visitors. Its success allowed it to tour through Toronto, Sao Paolo, and Brazil. However, the exhibit's success came as a surprise - especially given the fact that it was never supposed to have happened in the first place.

The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), which has presented shows on Kylie Minogue and Annie Lennox, had a fall through on an exhibit, and someone working with David Bowie tipped them off to the David Bowie Archive. After it was given access to the Archive, V&A took roughly two years to assemble the show. It was allowed to take anything it wanted, except for a plastic saxophone that Bowie was given as a teenager and still uses.

As a result, the show was able to form into the spectacle that it is today. Now, the public can take a better look at the words, films, songs, and ideas that most influenced David Bowie's art.

Tickets are on sale now, and are $25 for adults and teens, $10 for children ages 7-12, and free for children 6 and under.