The BBC site has a video gallery of album cover art created by Storm Thorgerson. This includes some very iconic covers, including Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon.
The neat thing about the gallery is that not only do they show the wide range of art that he has created, the audio interview delves into the ideas behind a lot of the work. So often we get to hear the musicians themselves explaining what went into the music. It’s much rarer to get to hear the rationale behind the cover art.
I’ve long said that the cover art created for rock and roll albums is an underappreciated art form, so for me this particular video clip was a rare treat.
In some ways, creating cover art must be far more challenging than being free to create whatever you want. Yes, it’s a marketing piece, designed to sell the music inside. However, it also has to mesh with the music inside, or it won’t truly accomplish its goal. (Though, that being said, true meshing isn’t 100% necessary. One of the first covers to be discussed in the video relies on subverting that linkage. But even at that, it still says something important and vital about the band that created the music inside that cover.)
All told, I found the video quite fascinating, and rather too short. I would have liked to know more about some of the covers that he created. Anyway, go check it out. If you’re at all interested in album art, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Related posts:
- The Circle Cover Art
- Digital Cover Art?
- It looks like I may get my wish…
- Weighing in on the iTunes debate…
- Cover Art, Liner Notes, iTunes and Zunes
Tags: cover art