Inspired – Paul Dean

In 1982, obsessed with music and graphics I went to college with a head full of Jamie Reid, Malcolm Garrett and Peter Saville. In 1983 something happened. The Cocteau Twins released Head Over Heels, with a sleeve by 23 Envelope.

My career is punctuated by musical highs and lows with each memory triggering an album artwork image, mostly 4AD-biased.

This independent label gave birth to some of the most beautiful visual images in my music collection. Vaughan Oliver and Chris Bigg were/are the creative mavericks.

The band 23 Envelope became V23 and 4AD started using other designers. Animal Collective, Underworld and Lisa Gerrard (pictured, referencing Oliver and Bigg) covers are just a few that provide a visual reference to the music within.

My consultancy recently worked on a project with London’s Victoria && Albert Museum, for which Bigg created the graphic content. So I now have Chris as a mate and Vaughan as a Facebook buddy.

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