STORM THORGERSON

Storm Thorgerson was the man behind some of the most iconic im- ages in the history of Rock and Roll. He was the genius sleeve design- er behind the weird and wonderful images of , Gene- sis, Ian Dury and . He is best known for his crucial role in creating ’s progressive aesthetic. Storm Thorgerson was an English artist, graphic designer, film maker and tennis fiend.

He was born in , Middlesex on 28 February 1944. Whilst at the in , Thorgerson shared a flat in South Kensington with his friend . It soon became a swinging sixties hub for a variety of artistic and musical characters. Together Aubrey and Thorgerson formed , the preemi- nent and most visionary album art design firm in the world. Hipgno- sis’ client list included Genesis, Yes, , and Paul McCartney and Wings. In 1987, following the dissolution of Hipgno- sis, Thorgerson formed his own design studio called Storm Studios.

He went into video directing and made TV documentaries, includ- ing “The Art of Tripping” (1993), which investigated the effect of drugs on creativity, and a science documentary called “Rubber Uni- verse” (1994). He designed album artwork for recent artists such as , Anthrax, and and continued to work on Pink Floyd projects. In March 1973 one of the most successful albums of all time was released: Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon”.The artwork for the album, which was designed by Storm Thorgerson, has become as famous and iconic as the music. Storm Thorgerson designed sixteen album covers for Pink Floyd; there are three he didn’t do.

Throughout the majority of his career, Thorgerson created his icon- ic artwork using photography, “I like photography because it is a reality medium, unlike drawing which is unreal. I like to mess with reality, to bend reality. Some of my works beg the question of is it real or not?” He used applied techniques such as multiple exposures to create surreal dislocations and disturbing juxtapositions. He cited artists and photographers including Man Ray, Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky, and Juan Gris as influences behind his work.

In his designs, Thorgerson eschewed computer manipulation in favour of building massive sets and tableaus, staging performances and actions and “doing it for real” in what he called “mind movies” and “photo paintings”. Storm Thorgerson died 18 April 2013. He left an unforgettable legacy of images which have changed the face of Rock and Roll and found a permanent place in our visual history. Source: http://www.artrepublic.com/biographies/61-storm-thorgerson.html