Behind the Cover: Hugh Syme

Hugh Syme is a Canadian Juno Award-winning graphic artist who is best known for his artwork and cover concepts for rock and metal bands. He is also a musician and has appeared in some Rush songs as a keyboard player. Syme is notably responsible for all of Rush's album cover art since 1975's Caress of Steel as well as creating Rush's famous Starman logo. He has said that he never imagined the band would use it as their main logo.



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His client base includes major record companies like Geffen Records, EMI Records, Mercury Records, RCA, Capitol Records, Sony Music, Atlantic Records, Warner Bros. Records and A&M Records.

Iron Maiden fans remember him best as the designer of The X Factor cover, which shows the band's mascot Eddie the Head dissected. It is remembered for its gritty realism. Whereas all previous Maiden albums were oil paintings, the X Factor Eddie was a puppet with some digital touch-ups to enhance its look. In some countries the cover was considered so gruesome that a less gory alternative was offered (the alternative cover is actually the back of the original CD booklet). Def Leppard's Retro Active album cover, which he co-designed with Nels Israelson, shows a lady sitting at a dressing table, looking in a mirror. From another perspective, it takes the form of a skull (a type of vanitas art), the woman's head forming the left eye socket, and her reflected head in the mirror forming the right eye socket. The mirror itself forms the shape of the skull and the accessories on the dressing table form the nose, nostrils and teeth. It was inspired by Charles Allan Gilbert's most famous work, All Is Vanity (1892).

Other bands Syme has done artwork for include: Megadeth, Styx, Fates Warning, Whitesnake, Queensrÿche, Aerosmith, and Dream Theater. Hugh also has three daughters Hadley, Maggie and Abbey who reside in New Castle, Indiana.



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http://www.hughsyme.com/

Behind the Cover: Hugh Syme

Hugh Syme is a Canadian Juno Award-winning graphic artist who is best known for his artwork and cover concepts for rock and metal bands. He is also a musician and has appeared in some Rush songs as a keyboard player. Syme is notably responsible for all of Rush's album cover art since 1975's Caress of Steel as well as creating Rush's famous Starman logo. He has said that he never imagined the band would use it as their main logo.



( more covers )

His client base includes major record companies like Geffen Records, EMI Records, Mercury Records, RCA, Capitol Records, Sony Music, Atlantic Records, Warner Bros. Records and A&M Records.

Iron Maiden fans remember him best as the designer of The X Factor cover, which shows the band's mascot Eddie the Head dissected. It is remembered for its gritty realism. Whereas all previous Maiden albums were oil paintings, the X Factor Eddie was a puppet with some digital touch-ups to enhance its look. In some countries the cover was considered so gruesome that a less gory alternative was offered (the alternative cover is actually the back of the original CD booklet). Def Leppard's Retro Active album cover, which he co-designed with Nels Israelson, shows a lady sitting at a dressing table, looking in a mirror. From another perspective, it takes the form of a skull (a type of vanitas art), the woman's head forming the left eye socket, and her reflected head in the mirror forming the right eye socket. The mirror itself forms the shape of the skull and the accessories on the dressing table form the nose, nostrils and teeth. It was inspired by Charles Allan Gilbert's most famous work, All Is Vanity (1892).

Other bands Syme has done artwork for include: Megadeth, Styx, Fates Warning, Whitesnake, Queensrÿche, Aerosmith, and Dream Theater. Hugh also has three daughters Hadley, Maggie and Abbey who reside in New Castle, Indiana.



( more LP covers )

http://www.hughsyme.com/