Music is Design’s Best Friend
Music and design have been long-standing partners in the art world for decades. So it was only natural for me to bring this beautiful love affair to light — because who doesn’t like a love story? Now if you were to ask any designer what they do when they are designing, 8 times out of 10 they will tell you “listen to music”.
It isn’t only because designers love music, in so many ways, but also because music literally influences art. I am not making this up, there are many studies that prove this. You might automatically think of Andy Warhol and his clear influence by the Velvet underground- and if you did bravo. They are often so interconnected that just as artists look into music for inspiration, so do musicians when looking into art. Kanye Wests’ My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy being a prime example of the two worlds merging so seamlessly together.
So it’s not surprising that some of the most renowned graphic designers in the industry find themselves designing for popular musicians. Here are some of our favorite examples.
Milton Glacier: Bob Dylan Poster
This 1966 poster illustration became an iconic symbol in the Design world. Depicting Dylan with psychedelic/kaleidoscopic hair, it is hard to forget. It transcends time and has become a timeless piece that almost anyone can recognize. Although millions of copies were printed, the poster has become a collectible and is now worth a few bucks if you have an original.
Peter Saville: Joy Division
You might’ve seen this artwork on t-shirts and posters in a lot of commercial stores. Originally made in 1979 for the Punk band Joy Division as an album cover, it has now become a popular work of art found almost everywhere. It’s a visualization of the radio waves emitted by a pulsar, chosen by the lead guitarist of the band.
Aubrey Powel & Storm Thorgerson: Dark Side of the moon
Aubrey and Storm started their album cover company together in 1968 creating countless iconic album covers. They worked with some of the greatest, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Phish, AC/DC, and more. They really revolutionized album covers, however their most iconic and everlasting design has been none other than Pink Floyds Dark Side of the Moon. Need I say more? They made fresh things happen with a triangle. It is genius.
In summary
The list can go on and on, from Paula Scher who designed over 150 album covers in her career, to Stefan Sagmeister who has designed album covers for Lou Reed, The Rolling Stones, and Aerosmith (to name a few). Because design and music are interconnected, they are ever-lasting bff’s. They have been making magic together for decades now, and hopefully will be for decades to come.
Interested in hearing what out team listens to while designing? Check out Gallardo Labs on Spotify and email hello@gallardolabs.com to let us know what your own favorite designing songs are.
Written by Nura Othman, Lead UX/UI Designer at Gallardo Labs
