The intersection of music and contemporary art: four album covers created by famous artists

Sienna Bentley

As a multidisciplinary platform, bite mag is all about converging creative genres. Two of my personal favourite interests, fine art and music, are two fields that (to my endless delight) crossover often. Music is not just audio, visuals play a key role in artistic translation – through album covers and music videos.

I’m taking a closer look at four of my favourite album covers designed by famous contemporary artists that have shaped the last century: Andy Warhol, Takashi Murakami, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring.

The Velvet Underground & Nico, Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol and The Velvet Underground, *The Velvet Underground & Nico*

Andy Warhol is a household name – the most iconic figure of the pop art movement. He is considered by many to be the most important artist of the second half of the 20th century. As a multidisciplinary creative, he ventured into the music world in the mid-1960s with The Velvet Underground and was the only credited producer on the band’s first studio album.

The Velvet Underground & Nico is considered to be a landmark album in music history, despite its lack of commercial success. Its release was delayed for Warhol to design the iconic album cover – the infamous banana print. (‘Venus In Furs’ – the fourth track on the record – is one of my all-time favourite songs.)

Warhol designed the album cover so that it had an interactive element. The banana’s vinyl skin could pulled away, offering a view of a pink fruit underneath. Lou Reed, the band’s frontman, said: “The banana actually made it into an erotic art show.”

Kids See Ghosts, Takashi Murakami

Takashi Murakami and Kids See Ghosts, *Kids See Ghosts*

The only studio album released by duo Kanye West and Kid Cudi, Kids See Ghosts bears the work of Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami – arguably one of the most influential Asian artists of our generation as he founded a new genre of art: superflat, which is a postmodern art form that is influenced heavily by anime and manga.

Murakami drew inspiration from Japanese artist Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji – a series of landscape prints – and sketches from West and Cudi. The album cover transposes the original painting to another world or dimension.

He also created the cover for West’s third studio album Graduation.

The New Abnormal, Jean-Michel Basquiat

Jean-Michel Basquiat and The Strokes, *The New Abnormal*

American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat rose to fame during the 1980s as part of the neo-expressionism movement. The Strokes’ 2020 comeback album The New Abnormal features a section of his 1981 Birds on Money painting, which was originally inspired by jazz legend Charlie Parker.

The Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas stated that the album’s title refers to a kind of “threat to your reality”, so it makes sense that they would go for Basquiat, whose art deals with themes of power structures and their effects on society.

‘Without You’, Keith Haring

Keith Haring and David Bowie, ‘Without You’

After Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat, American artist Keith Haring is one of the most recognisable figures from the 1980s art scene. His pop art emerged from the NYC graffiti subculture, and he designed many album covers during his career, mostly to aid charitable causes.

‘Without You’, a single from David Bowie’s influential 1983 album Let’s Dance, has an unmistakable cover and highlights how simplicity can be truly striking. These limited edition sleeves are highly sought after today, having first been pressed in Japan in 1983.