CMJ 2009 Panel: Graphically Challenged: The Lost Love Of The Album Cover & Beyond

Tuesday, October 22, 2009 2:00-3:15pm

Depending on your age, you may or may not remember the feeling of opening a CD jewel case or looking at a vinyl album cover with liner notes while listening to your new music purchase. The visual component of music is still just as important to the identity and sound of an artist. Here we discuss the visual aspect of modern day music and its future.

Speaker/Artist(s) Moderator: Craig Hyman, Artist Manager, Consultant, Promoter, Coach
Cynthia Cochrane, General Manager, Rock Ridge Music, LLC.
Christopher Kornmann, Art Director & Graphic Designer, spit and image
Lorna Leighton, Art Director, flytedesign
Joe Spix, Art Director, Universal Motown Republic Group

This panel provided insight on album artwork and other artwork associated with a musicians brand and how important that is. The four panelists and moderator worked to figured out where artwork fits in when we've become so inter-laced in a digital era where we can simply download music and artwork becomes less of an interest. What's important to understand is that there are different functions and artistic directions taken when creating artwork for a digital release, a cd, or LP, as well as for special packaging such as deluxe edition CD/DVD combos. The different sizes and openings for each make for different options, so graphic artists keep this in mind when creating. You have more room and possibly more creative drive for an LP because of its size and perhaps it's harder to create something for a cd release and easiest for a digital release. It used to be important to include the name of the artist and cover with a release but now iTunes tells you exactly who the artist is and what the title is so there's little need for that when it comes to a digital release. Throughout the panel the experienced professionals spoke about their favorite artwork and displayed covers from the 60s through today.

Another striking point Cochrane made was that music is so portable that our surrounding are becoming our visual. But everyone agrees there's still a need for a physical product. Photography also plays a key role in the artwork of a cover. The visual element ties into the brand of the artist and the associations you make bring you closer to the artist. Also, the graphic artist needs to hear the artists music to fuel artistic direction. The challenge for the graphic artist is to be able to create something that fits today's time in a digital era and still have it be visually compelling and creative. Is that lost? Well take a look at today's artwork. What do you think? So much can be said on this topic but I'm just providing a first start of dicussion like the panelists did. Now all I have to say in closing is take a look at the LP artwork for Alice Cooper's School's Out. Now that's creative.