John Van Hamersveld
John Van Hamersveld (born 1941, Baltimore, Maryland, United States) is an American graphic artist and illustrator who designed record jackets for pop and psychedelic bands, since the 1960s.[1] Albums include Hotter Than Hell by Kiss, Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles, Crown of Creation by Jefferson Airplane and Exile on Main Street by The Rolling Stones.
Album covers
Among his most notable album covers are:
- Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles
- Exile on Main Street by The Rolling Stones[2]
- Volume 3: A Child's Guide to Good and Evil by The West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band
- Vincebus Eruptum by Blue Cheer[3]
- Crown of Creation by Jefferson Airplane
- Skeletons in the Closet by The Grateful Dead
- Hotter Than Hell by Kiss
- Eat to the Beat by Blondie
- Retro Hash by Asher Roth
- Get Hurt by The Gaslight Anthem
Movie posters
Van Hamersveld designed the iconic Endless Summer movie poster using a photograph. He arranged the shoot in January, 1964, after filmmaker Bruce Brown showed him the film's opening scene. He positioned Brown in the foreground with his surfboard on his head and the film's two stars between Brown and the setting sun. He had learned this technique at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena where he took night classes, graduating later that year. He converted the photo into an abstract design by reducing each color to a single tone and giving each image a single, hard edge.[4]
Other work
He designed an official poster and 360-foot-long mural for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games; illustrations for Esquire, Rolling Stone, Billboard; and branding and logos for Fatburger, Contempo Casuals, and Broadway Deli. He also designed the rear cover collage and inside sleeve of Billy Squier's 1984 album Signs of Life painted two buses for the Fremont st experience for the summer of love 40th anniverserey
Recent work
In 1997 he started his own line of products revisiting his work from 1964–1974, which he calls “Post-Future.” With the printmaking of a fine art edition of the “Endless Summer” Poster, he moved his design work into his Coolhous studio in Santa Monica and between analog and digital environments has managed to create works such as the posters for the 2005 Cream reunion concert at the Royal Albert Hall. In 2013 John celebrated 50 years in Graphic Design producing a vinyl EP record sleeve for Liverpool-based Blues Rockers Sankofa as well as releasing the book John Van Hamersveld - Coolhaus Studio: 50 years of Graphic Design. He continued that line of work in 2014 with two more artworks for records by Asher Roth 'Retrohash' and the Billboard Top 5 release 'Get Hurt' by The Gaslight Anthem.
References
- ↑ "'Endless Summer' poster guy makes digital waves", by Tom Berg, The Orange County Register, January 14, 2009. Retrieved June 18, 2009.
- ↑ "Imaging The Stones: John Van Hamersveld". Rock's Backpages. 11 August 2001. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ↑ "Preserver of the past". Calgaryherald.com. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
- ↑ "Orange County Register : The poster that changed Orange County". Ocregister.com. Retrieved 2014-07-18.
External links
- John Van Hamersveld Website
- Article --- "John Van Hamersveld" Swindle, Issue #05
- Article --- "John Van Hamersveld" on The Giant: The Definitive Obey Giant Site
- Press Release for recent show at Shepard Fairey's Gallery
- AnaheimOC.org Surfing Podcast
- the Rock And Roll Report "Making of the Cover for Exile on Main Street"
- Rolling Stones Exile On Main Street Blues (Photots and Images by John Van Hamersveld) on YouTube
- Hippie Nation on The VivaVision at Fremont Street Experience on YouTube