News
Gold Medal to Mirage Cartography Cover Art
Society of Illustrators Selects CD Cover from Hundreds of Entries
The Society of Illustratorshas awarded its 53rd annual gold medal in advertising artwork to the design and cover artwork of Paul Mark’s recently released collection of acoustic guitar instrumentals titledMirage Cartography(RDTN 5909). The remarkable gatefold cover illustration to the Radiation Records release was created by Chris Buzelli (www.ChrisBuzelli.com).
The prestigious award competition was judged by a broad panel of illustrators and art directors who selected the winner from a field of nearly 1,000 entries from across many industries. “I’m just really proud and thrilled that we won,” says Buzelli. “It’s sort of like the Oscars for illustrators and art directors.
“I really connected to the title of the album,” he added. “I listened to one of the first tracks on the album and I was hooked. The album played in the background while I painted the cover.”
Founded in 1901, the NYC-based Society of Illustrators’ (www.societyillustrators.org) ongoing mission is to provide illustrators with a center to discuss, demonstrate and exhibit their work. Over the decades its august history has included participatory roles by some of America’s greatest illustrators, including Maxfield Parish, N.C. Wyeth, Charles Dana Gibson and Frederic Remington.
A gallery show celebrating the year’s award winners will take place from Feb. 23, 2011 through March 19 at the Society’s headquarters in New York City. At the show’s official opening on March 4 gold medals will be awarded to Chris for his brilliant illustration and to Paul Mark as art director of the project.
“I could tell that Paul understood how to get the best work out of an artist,” says Chris. “I’m sure it had something to do with his experience as a musician. He said to me one of the best things that an art director could say to an illustrator: ‘I just want you to do your thing.’”
Read the entire Radiation Records press release. See the complete 3-panel cover art here, and the internal panels of the CD package here.
