Kate Bush has penned an emotional tribute to choreographer Lindsay Kemp.

Kemp, who famously collaborated with David Bowie as well as Bush herself, died while in Italy last week at the age of 80. David Haughton, his closest friend and collaborator for 45 years, said Kemp had remained busy and active right till the end, saying “he suddenly said he felt ill, and a minute and a half later he was gone.”

Having worked closely with Bowie, Kemp went on to mentor Bush after she saw his 1974 show “Flowers” and asked him to work with her. Following his passing, Bush described Kemp as “a truly original and great artist of the stage,” adding, “to call him a mime artist is like calling Mozart a pianist.”

The statement appeared on Bush’s official website under a post titled “a message for Lindsay”. Here it is in full:

“The world has lost a truly original and great artist of the stage. To call him a mime artist is like calling Mozart a pianist. He was very brave, very funny and above all, astonishingly inspirational. There was no-one quite like Lindsay. I was incredibly lucky to study with him, work with him and spend time with him. I loved him very much and will miss him dearly. Thank you, dear Lindsay.”