Cover Art of the Week #27: Love And Its Opposite, Tracey Thorn

What happens when reality rears its head and the certainty of love morphs into something sour? A good number of things: hatred, fury, sadness, contempt, all rabid but equally intense emotional forces. The inner turmoil is beautifully interpreted by John Gilsenen of iwantdesign into the defaced family photo found on Tracey Thorn’s new album cover, Love And Its Opposite.

Says John of his design concept, “I was inspired by the lyrics and mood of the record - the way family relationships can get more complicated and messed up with time. I found a stock photo - a family portrait - that was formal but also a bit decadent, and then just went to work on it. I tried to capture the same feeling in the typeface - formal but a bit fancy.” 

The fact that he chooses to use archival images that are “posed but quite candid” reveals how John perceives the photographic ritual: we pose to promote a particular reading of ourselves, in this case a loving familial unit, unaware of how our our facial and bodily nuances can sometimes betray that facade. Add to that some scribbles to the faces and a whole other dimension to the family’s backstory opens up in our imagination. Pretty genius! 

As for the unusual typeface, John explains, “I created bespoke typeface for the Tracey Thorn logo that is intended to reflect the images, a fairly normal simple face that appears to be dressed up for the occasion. The artwork is a reflection of the dark humour that permeates the record.” 

Oh, The Divorces, the first single off the album, is a limited release on 7” clear vinyl, with a cover also designed by John Gilsenen. The matching ruffled shirts are an inspired touch indeed, but we especially love the matching faraway gaze: 

The majority of John’s other projects are also music-related or for record labels. Check them out on his company’s site, iwantdesign. And definitely give the fantastic Love And Its Opposite a whirl on our Tracey Thorn AUPEO! Artist Station!