All Tomorrow’s Posters

When All Tomorrow’s Parties came along ten years ago, its founder, Barry Hogan, had a vision of setting the festival apart from the likes of Glastonbury and Reading by staying intimate, non-corporate and fan-friendly. Each festival was curated by significant bands or artists, making for an ever-unusual mix of events and musical genres. Even though ATP has become increasingly successful, the principles remain, including Hogan’s particular attention to promotional artwork. ‘Many events suffer from mediocre artwork, but we feel it is as important as the curators’ choices,’ says Hogan. ‘We have our design identity and we work with the ethos of quality over quantity.’ For the first years, the festival worked with Ben Drury, who offered ‘a classic British style where the art and the fonts used would stand up over the course of time’, says Hogan. ‘But as the event evolved musically we started to explore and experiment.’ Artists and designers since then have included Tara McPherson, Motorcycle Michael and Kii Arens, and as celebrations get under way later this month to mark ATP’s ten years, the posters of the past chart the festival’s ethos perfectly. Hogan means to go on as he has started, and is particularly excited about this year’s Christmas edition, curated by My Bloody Valentine, which has a poster designed by Tim Biskup. ‘Some folks have commented it’s the best art we have ever had,’ he says.

The documentary All Tomorrow’s Parties tours from 23 October with Les Savy Fav and is released on DVD on 2 November. ATP: Nightmare Before Christmas, curated by My Bloody Valentine, is on 4-6 December. Ten Years of ATP Festival runs from 11-13 December