The Iconography of the Album Cover

The album cover is often an insight into an artist's worldview. The best album cover art illustrates and accompanies the music in a way that creates a whole package. The record company usually takes most of their direction from the artist by sitting down and talking to them about the ideas behind the album. Some designers tend not to think of designs in terms of genre; each specific job exists in its own world with its own set of reference points. An album sleeve is an entry point into the universe that the music is in; it's a window into the themes and ideas of the artist. The point of an album sleeve is that there is a need for a visual accompaniment to the music. Even if an iPod image is small, we still have to update all our artwork to work as a downloadable PDF book on iTunes for an album, so the demand is still there. There's a resurgence of vinyl also. Special packaging sells quite well to a select audience There are a lot o people still who need a tactile product, something to pore over.

Album cover art can be incredibly varied, utilising photos, graphics, typography, or any combination of these. Of course, album cover art is usually to promote an album, to make it eye-catching (it will usually be reproduced not just on CD cover, but also posters), and to tell us something about the musicians and the music behind it. While the immediate target audience is likely to be those who frequently buy music, and particularly those who favour the specific band or genre, the artwork may be designed to attract a wider audience. As the image is a construction, everything has been put there deliberately and for a reason. This includes all the text, graphics and logos.

The album cover should be able to be associated with underlying meanings as well as denoted and connoted, identifying the elements of the image and further examining them for meanings and links. Album covers also include signs, symbols and codes. A sign is a representation that refers to something else and has meaning, whilst a code means the structure of how signs are organised into systems to make meaning. These are usually divided into the technical, for example, what techniques are sued to make the image, such as camera angles and lighting. Alternatively, the symbolic, meaning what subtle indicators are there in the text to create the meaning, for example details of clothing or the arrangement of object. There are also written codes that include the use of language and text layout. Some questions which may be asked when considering the composition, framing and generally conventions of the album cover would be: How is the composed? If there are numerous objects or figures in the scene, is one of them favoured? Are they all in focus? Are they all in the same visual plane? How is the image framed? Do we see more of less of anything than we feel we should? Does a certain angle, or the inclusion or omission of anything unusual from the scene say anything important? How do light, shadow and colour play a part in the image? What roles does the text in the image play?

Album covers can also be self-referential, adding an extra layer of meaning to the image. For example the Clash's 'London Calling' references to Elvis Presley's debut album.



Elvis Presley's album cover signifies the birth of Rock and Roll,
playing the guitar.

Whereas The Clash's album cover signifies the killing of Rock
 and Roll, telling by their punk image and the band member's
action of smashing a guitar.