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RockPoP Gallery
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Special Features/Events Exclusive RockPoP Gallery Interview - "GRAMMY-Winning Packaging – How It All Comes Together" Interviews with this year’s winners for “Best Recording Package” and “Best Boxed or Special Limited-Edition Package” – Gail Marowitz and Ian Cuttler.  Best Recording Package - "The Forgotten Arm"  Best Boxed or Special L/E Package - "The Legend - Johnny Cash" You have to admit it - the nominees for the 48th Annual GRAMMY Awards in these categories represented artists – both musical and graphic – from a wide variety of genres and disciplines. From the covers for an Alabama gospel/folk project and two leading female indie songwriters, to the packaging of multi-CD retrospectives on Sir Ray, The Man in Black, and NY’s premium purveyors of punk, every package spoke volumes of what lay inside the shrink wrap. Recent research has shown that nearly 20% of all music purchases are affected directly from the impression made by the packaging, so these graphic first impressions have become even more important to an industry dealing with music delivered in new ways (including sans package!). Gail Marowitz – winner for “Best Recording Package – Single CD” for "The Forgotten Arm" - Aimee Mann - Aimee Mann & Gail Marowitz, art directors, on SuperEgo Records - Much of Gail’s youth was misspent in record stores, staring at album covers (much of her adulthood is spent the same way!). For the past 15 years – and most recently as Vice President of Design at Columbia Records, she has been designing music packaging, having designed covers for Patti Smith, James Taylor, Bette Midler, Aerosmith and Bob Dylan. Prior to her stint at Columbia Records, she was Director of Creative Services at the now defunct Imago Recording Company where she worked with such diverse artists as Henry Rollins, Paula Cole and Aimee Mann. She has received numerous awards and has had her work published in various design annuals. She has lectured at the Type Director's Club and been the Moderator of the panel "Art Directors Talk Shop" for three years running at The Entertainment/Media Packaging Summit in Los Angeles. Since this interview was completed, Gail started a new career at Wind-Up Records, the largest independent label in the United States, where she will oversee the entire label's visual direction, from packaging to videos, as well as satisfy her need for listening to blistering hard rock in the office with no fear of being asked to turn it down. Ian Cuttler – winner for “Best Boxed or Limited-Edition Special Package for "The Legend" - Johnny Cash - Ian Cuttler, art director, on Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings - Mexican-born artist Ian Cuttler has been living in New York City for the past 9 years, where he has excelled in his career as Senior Art Director for Sony Music. He has successfully art directed and designed a wide variety of projects such as ¨Louis Armstrong: The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings¨ (which was also nominated at the 43rd Annual GRAMMY Awards. Other projects in his rooster include CD packaging and campaigns for recording artists such as Beyonce, Destiny´s Child, Ricky Martin, Mariah Carey, Julio Iglesias, and Marc Anthony, among others. ¨This is just the beginning" Cuttler claims. Even though he is well-established as an industry leader, his passion for the arts keep driving him to explore in related fields, such as photography, where his prowess is rapidly growing, creating quite a name for himself. Interviewer Mike Goldstein of NY’s RockPoP Gallery asked both of these talented individuals about their processes, the artists and label reps they collaborated with to produce their winning works, and a little about what they think the future holds for them and the role of the art director in a rapidly-changing retail music environment. Here are excerpts from those interviews: MG - Thanks to you both for talking with me today. I want to focus first on the artists you were creating packaging for. How is it that you were first introduced to Johnny Cash and Aimee Mann’s music? IC - The first time I listened to his voice was on the radio in my home town, Mexico City, back in the late 80's. I was hooked on his deep voice from the first note I heard. MG – So, in your opinion, what made Johnny Cash - the artist and his music - different from other artists in his "category" or of his day? IC - I think it was his bold, unpolished sound, as well as his lyrics. GM – I met Aimee at Imago (Recording Company, and now-defunct BMG label. Gail's creative relationship with Aimee Mann has spanned more than ten years, designing all of her CDs since 1993's "Whatever"). I met her more as a big fan, as I really liked her in ‘Til Tuesday. You could tell by her voice and her song-writing that she was truly unique – no one writes better lyrics. We worked on album design – cover, liner, etc., - as true friends and collaborators. The only other artist I’ve worked with who showed this degree of dedication was Patti Smith. MG - In coordinating all of the photographers, artists, writers, lithographers, and licensing folks, how long did this process take - from start to finished product? GM – My first conversation with Aimee took place at the end of October 2004 after seeing Owen Smith’s (the illustrator) show at La Luz De Jesus (a well-known gallery in Los Angeles). We had the package in production in March 2005 – a luxurious amount of time compared to the regular major-label process – I’ve often had only 10 days to put together a package! IC - The process took a bit over a year (The Legend¨ is truly a major masterpiece of packaging-related production, designed with a “scrap book” approach that flows trough the musician’s life, including rare images from his personal and professional life and famous portraits presented in an impressive 16¨x12.5¨ finished size). MG – Ian, I understand that this is a comprehensive compilation, featuring many, many songs, but was there a particular track on the album that served as the inspiration of the package art/design? IC - Not really, I think it was more about the body of work and the overall feeling his music gives me. I wanted to make sure that I was conveying a sense of timelessness in a space that reflects the grittiness and harmony of the music. MG – Gail, was there a track on “The Forgotten Arm” that guided your vision? GM – Although no particular track inspired the work, the song “Video”, which has themes of loneliness and addiction, galvanized the whole package’s “bones”. The Owen Smith illustration we used inside the package for “Video” was the one that we saw at his show (it shows an exhausted boxer with his head down) that drew us to his work. The term “Forgotten Arm” stands for the arm that comes out of nowhere to clock you when two exhausted boxers are leaning on each other. MG - What “guidance” - or specific instructions - did you provide the illustrators or the photographers/designers that created the key parts of your packages? IC - As an art director, I'm usually involved in the selection the photographers, illustrators or anybody else commissioned to generate artwork for the project. In this case, with the book being a retrospective piece and Cash not being alive, all the images where pre-existing. The illustration done by Marc Burckhardt, who was one of Cash's favorite illustrators, was commissioned by the label. In terms of the hands-on design, it was all done by me, although I had people and vendors help with most of the scanning, retouching and mechanicals. GM – We just tortured Owen Smith in front of his wife and two kids! He’d heard of Aimee and responded to her artistry. I did my usual synopsis of each song on the album and provided him with that as guidance. He did pencil sketches, which Aimee and I reviewed, and went back and forth until the final product was ready and we were all happy with it. I did struggle to come up with the right type style for the lettering - I wanted a “pulp-fiction novel feel” to it. While I was upstate at an auction, I bought a bunch of old pulp fiction books and found my inspiration in a book I’d bought and adapted a font from that. MG – Did you consider your respective efforts to be works of self-expression, or did you take your lead from your client (or the artist)? IC - Both. My job consists of communicating and telling a story that does not belong to me. The material is given to me and the product manager in bits and pieces and, as we put it together I have to translate it into a graphic timeline, having to create an environment where the story develops. The abundance of black in the project reflects "the man in black" and the added scratches and gritty textures reflect the history, hardship and legacy that Cash left us. I didn't want this book to look like a brand new book but more of a scrapbook that has been read over and over. So, indirectly, the artist inspired the flow and feel of the project. GM – This was not a work of self-expression. I want to bring the artist’s vision to life and, in this case, Aimee comes “fully-formed”, versus many other artists who might be clueless as to how to approach this part of producing their record. Once we’d agreed that the theory behind the package was “chapters in a book”, I felt that the lyrics should be presented looking like pages in that book. She worked hard as a collaborator with me to re-write the lyrics in this fashion to fit the art direction. MG – Here’s a more general item I’m interested in getting your opinions on - With the electronic delivery of music products growing at a fast pace, are you noticing any more/less enthusiasm on the client's (or artist's) behalf to invest time and money in packaging that stands out? IC - Because of what's going on in the music industry, it's an odd environment these days, because even though the client expects more they want to pay less. In the case of this project, the label was very generous because they knew the potential the project had. Two versions where created - the special package which consist of a large-format book with 128 pages, 5 CD's and one DVD and a consumer package which has 4 CD's and a booklet with less pages and fewer photographic materials. GM – The major labels don’t seem eager to invest in packaging. The majors are like the Queen Mary making a turn, where the indies are more like speed boats, so they’ll most probably be more interested in this sort of investment. I think that the best ideas will focus on doing limited-edition artwork delivered on multiple platforms, and special packages for the fans – bonuses that will separate these products and keep them unique. These can be delivered online, too (as Apple has demonstrated in their iTunes store, offering special versions of downloadable album cover artwork/notes for some albums – MG). MG – Last question - Where do you keep your new Grammy? IC - I haven't got it yet, it is supposed to arrive in the mail. Once it arrives I'll see where it fits (probably in the kitchen). GM – I’m still waiting for my statue. They said that it should come any day…! MG – Thanks to you both, and best of luck in your careers – we look forward to seeing more of the fruits of your labor in upcoming years. For more information on Ian Cuttler, please visit http://www.iancuttler.com For more information on Gail Marowitz’s new company – Wind-Up Records - please visit http://www.winduprecords.com For more information on RockPoP Gallery, we invite you to visit our site at http://www.rockpopgallery.com Be sure to check out the Grammy site to see photos and videos of this year's festivities. NY & LA-area collectors - thanks for attending our opening display in Huntington, NY. We're working on setting up another display in Los Angeles beginning August 19th, 2006 at the Tobey C. Moss Gallery in West Hollywood - click here for more details. On an ongoing basis, we will have a small rotating display at the Huntington Art Center, so please be sure to stop by when you're in the Huntington Village area. Directions to Huntington Art Center - 11 Wall St Huntington, NY 11743-2046, US |