Mr Porter takes a closer look at the enduring music and style of some of the finest jazz musicians. Miles Davis, as one would expect, is among the eight icons featured. Great photos throughout of all the famous musicians.
Category: style
The Miles Davis Stamp: Postal Service Issues New Miles Davis Stamp
Write someone a letter. Mail it with the new Miles Davis stamp – available today from the USPS.
The Edith Piaf and Miles Davis stamps are being issued as Forever stamps, which are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate.
Stamps commemorating Miles Davis and Edith Piaf will be dedicated at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City today. The ceremony will include members of the Davis family, including his children Cheryl and Erin, as well as appearances by bassist Ron Carter and Blue Note president Don Was.
A second dedication is also planned for June 27 at the Hollywood Bowl’s museum terrace from 7 to 8 p.m. in advance of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s “A Celebration of Miles Davis” concert, which will be hosted by former Davis bandmate and the Phil’s creative chair for jazz, Herbie Hancock.
Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamps using an undated, black-and-white photo of Piaf from the Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images and a black-and-white photo of Davis, from 1970, by David Gahr. Breeding is Creative Director of Journey Group, a creative firm that specializes in design, publishing, content, and just being all-around super creative.
Breeding writes about his assignment to design the stamps commemorating both Miles Davis and Edith Piaf.
“I think that this postage stamp is a reminder of how important Miles Davis’s music was and is to the world.” – Ron Carter
Quote via CBC Music.
The Miles Davis Online Interview: Jorge Armando
(Artist Series II, Volume 3)
Part two of the Artist Series is moving right along with the latest installment – illustrator Jorge Armando. Anyone who blends 3D technology with an illustration of Miles Davis is going to get my attention. And the talented Armando did just that. The original – and quite awesome – design is above. The 3D version, below, requires those fun glasses!
Currently in the process of getting his Master’s in Art and design at UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México) in Mexico City, Armando features a ton of great designs and illustrations on his official blog. The Frank Zappa and James Brown are also personal favorites.
I recently had a chance to speak with Jorge about his artwork and Miles Davis. Also, his choice for Favorite Miles Davis Album is a first for the Artist Series, and a nice change of pace!
Miles Davis Online: Your “Miles Davis” digital artwork is fantastic! What exactly is the creative process behind this type of digital artwork? How long does it take you to complete?
Jorge Armando: In this kind of illustration the process consists of the fusion of traditional technical concepts employing digital tools. I made this image in particularly for my own pleasure, using a good prototype, a photo with the expression of energy characteristic of Miles Davis performances.
The original image was made in one day, and the 3-D remake in one afternoon.
Miles Davis Online: Why Miles Davis? What was the reason you decided to create a design of the jazz legend?
Jorge Armando: It’s really simple, I think Miles Davis is the most important musician in the history of jazz, and accompany with John Coltrane, Frank Zappa, Robert Fripp – especially in his work with King Crimson -, Herbert Von Karajan, Silvestre Revueltas, Karlheinz Stockhausen and Igor Stravisky are the most important musicians of the 20th century.
Miles Davis Online: I see that the design is now in 3D! How does that work? Do we need special glasses?
Jorge Armando: This technique is named anaglyph 3-d, and yes, you need the conventional 3-D glasses.
Miles Davis Online: How would you describe yourself as an artist?
Jorge Armando: Don’t think of myself like like an artist -yet-, though I studied design and define my self as illustrator…, a specialist between philosophy, science and art.
I’m still in the process of constructing my style, to consist in the fusion of canon and shapeless; when my work arrives to that goal my images could be seen in an artistic way, not just aesthetic or communicative objects.
Miles Davis Online: Are you working on anything special at the moment?
Jorge Armando: Actually I’m doing my Master in Arts and Design in Academia de San Carlos at UNAM’s — for that reason most of my images and texts that I produce since a year is directed to use for my Master’s final work or thesis, that is about politics, cartoons and the creator problem’s in the present.
You can see this here.
Miles Davis Online: Favorite Miles Davis album?
Jorge Armando: Dark Magus
© Jorge Armando. All artwork, and images of artwork are property of Jorge Armando. All rights reserved.
The Miles Davis Stamp: Dedication Ceremonies Set For NYC And LA
Via Chris Barton from the LA Times:
Combining the twin obsessions of music and philately, stamps commemorating Miles Davis and Edith Piaf will be dedicated at the the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City on June 12. The ceremony will include members of the Davis family, including his children Cheryl and Erin, as well as appearances by bassist Ron Carter and Blue Note president Don Was.
West Coast fans disappointed at the prospect of missing out on another New York-based jazz event can take heart, however. A second dedication is also planned for June 27 at the Hollywood Bowl’s museum terrace from 7 to 8 p.m. in advance of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s “A Celebration of Miles Davis” concert, which will be hosted by former Davis bandmate and the Phil’s creative chair for jazz, Herbie Hancock.
Full story here.
Happy Birthday Miles Davis
The Miles Davis Online Interview: Tobias Hall
(Artist Series II, Volume 1)
We begin the second collection of the Artist Series with the wonderfully talented Tobias Hall, an illustrator/designer/muralist based in London.
Among his exciting collection of artwork is a fantastic Miles Davis illustration (above). You can also view an absolutely gorgeous mural here featuring Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson and Max Roach. Other murals created by Hall include a superb Nina Simone located in a South London bedroom, and an outstanding Winston Churchill created for a Zizzi restaurant in South Woodford.
Speaking of Zizzi Ristorante, Hall has been working closely with the popular eatery as part of the design team, lending a creative hand with everything from photography to graphic design and art direction.
Besides the Miles Davis, other personal favorites in Hall’s collection includes the Roger Federer, the Lionel Messi, and his David Bowie-inspired murals and painted tables completed for Zizzi in David Bowie’s home town of Beckenham. Hall’s art prints are also available for purchase. Click here to have a look.
As a new fan of Hall’s work, I was determined to track down the artist and ask him as few questions about Miles Davis, his creative process, and what’s next.
Miles Davis Online: You feature such a wonderful variety of designs and illustrations. And in the middle of it all – Miles Davis. What led you to creating the artwork Miles Davis – Kind of Blue?
Tobias Hall: I’ve got a pretty big passion for music of all sorts, and it’s a real ambition of mine to create art to go alongside it, be that in the form of gig posters, album art, whatever. I started getting into Jazz and Blues in a big way towards the end of university, so the first Miles Davis piece was really just a natural response to that.
Miles Davis Online: And what exactly is the creative process behind this type of illustration?
Tobias Hall: It all starts with the music itself really, it’s always playing whenever I work. Once I have a general idea of composition/concept it’s just a case of drawing out the separate elements by hand, then layering, colouring and texturing them in Photoshop.
Miles Davis Online: As for the wonderful Jazz Legends mural: was Miles Davis always in your vision to be part of the mural design? Also, how long did the process take to complete?
Tobias Hall: The mural was created for a restaurant in sunny Croydon, London. They often hold nights of live jazz music, so I thought it would be cool to depict some of Jazz’s most famous faces. A Jazz ‘super band’ if you like. Naturally, Miles had to be a part of it. The mural took around a day and a half to paint.
Miles Davis Online: Who are some artists of the past and present that have inspired you?
Tobias Hall: The two main artists to have influenced my work are Keith Haring and David Foldvari. It’s a funny one, because stylistically the two are very different, but both have inspired me in equal measure.
Miles Davis Online: Are you working on anything special at the moment?
Tobias Hall: I have just finished some album artwork for Canadian folk musician Del Barber, who’s album is released on the 1st May, and there is talk of a huge music-themed mural project for a hotel in the pipeline, but that hasn’t been confirmed as of yet. I spend most of my days as an in-house illustrator/designer for a restaurant chain here in the UK, working on everything from menus to photography or art direction. It’s good fun.
Miles Davis Online: Might you revisit Miles Davis in your work?
Tobias Hall: No doubt. Jazz music as a whole continues to influence my practice, and with Miles being such an enigmatic fellow, I’m sure I’m bound to explore him and his music a bit more in the future.
Miles Davis Online: Favorite Miles Davis album?
Tobias Hall: Round About Midnight.
© Tobias Hall. All artwork, and images of artwork are property of Tobias Hall. All rights reserved.
Miles Davis Online Celebrates Debut Collection Of Artist Series
Since debuting Miles Davis Online in 2009, I have featured 20 extremely talented people in the Artist Series. It has been an absolute joy discovering these artists, exploring their terrific work, and getting to know them as well. The opportunity to showcase their Miles Davis-inspired artwork and photographs has been a great pleasure of mine. Their work certainly makes this place look a lot better!
I look back at the photographs, designs, and paintings, and I marvel at the talent. It’s inspiring. Of course I only focused on the Miles Davis artwork, but these photographers, designers, and painters each have collections that are well-worth visiting online at their official websites.
I’m excited to begin the next volume of artist interviews, which kicks off next week. I will continue my search for artwork inspired by Miles Davis – abstract, portrait, photographs, pencil sketches, and whatever else is out there being created by talented individuals who are artistic… and just so happen to have a love for Miles Davis.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to be part of the first volume in the Artist Series. Discovering your work has been a special treat.
Miles Davis Online Artist Series: Volume 1-20
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Miles Davis + Bitches Brew Style Skate Decks = Very Cool
These are so kick-ass. I would put them right beside Western Edition’s equally awesome Miles 59′ Quintet series.
The Bitches Brew collection is limited to 100 sets of four decks each, and is a part of Western Edition’s Spring/Summer 2012 line.
via Western Edition Skateboarding:
It is beyond rare when a collaboration presents such a meaningful display of each others passions, talents, and legacies in a form so natural and yet so surprisingly distinct.
Commissioned by Miles Davis for his landmark album “Bitches Brew”, inspired artist Mati Klarwein created this painting for the album’s cover. With the support of Klarwein’s family, led by his son Balthazar who happens to be a respectable skater, Western Edition is proud to introduce “The Bitches Brew” capsule collection.
The highlight of the collection includes a four deck series integration of the album’s cover art. The symmetry of the painting is displayed by having both top and bottom graphics on each deck, the light portion on the bottom and the corresponding dark portion on the top. Please visit Mati Klarwein’s new website (www.matiklarweinart.com) to see the full spectrum of the artist’s portfolio and a biography.
The Miles Davis Online Interview: Pieter Boersma
(Artist Series Volume 20)
I have a personal Top Ten list of my favorite Miles Davis photographs. It changes now and then, depending on new photos I might stumble upon. I have a new entry for the top ten, not sure where, but it’s in there.
It’s actually the above photo, shot by the talented photographer Pieter Boersma. A true professional, the Amsterdam-based Boersma has a long and distinguished career photographing everything from Amsterdam history, experimental music, theater, and jazz, to urban landscapes, citizens movements, development policy in Southern African countries, and much more.
I invite everyone to check out the Jazz Collection, which is quite fantastic.
Boersma was kind enough to indulge me for a brief chat about his work and his photos of Miles Davis – an artist he really didn’t bother to follow after 1963. This is our 20th installment of the Artist Series, and I am pleased to celebrate the Miles Davis Online milestone by publishing two of Pieter Boersma’s wonderful photos of Miles Davis, along with his comments.
Miles Davis Online: You feature many wonderful musicians in your collection. Would you say there is something unique about jazz musicians that make them compelling subjects to photograph?
Pieter Boersma: Of all musicians, jazz musicians show more intensity and are less static. It is the desperate attempt of the photographer to grab the music that produces so many jazz pictures, and it is always a failure, at least one grab the atmosphere.
Miles Davis Online: Can you provide a little background on the two beautiful photos of Miles Davis taken at the 1967 De Doelen show in Rotterdam?
Pieter Boersma: It was a so-called Newport Jazz Festival concert. I came in fact for Archie Shepp. Miles played after the pause. There is nothing more to say then I was there anyway. I didn’t buy records of Miles in that time. As I told you, I like Miles very much until 1963 or so. My interest in jazz went more in the direction of Cecil Taylor, Ornette Coleman, [Eric] Dolphy, Coltrane, Shepp, and the free jazz developments in Europe.
Miles Davis Online: You also feature two terrific photos of Miles from 1969, also taken at a De Doelen show.
Pieter Boersma: This was also a NJF concert, and I came for Cecil Taylor.
Miles Davis Online: Would you like to have worked with him more – perhaps away from the stage and more personal?
Pieter Boersma: Of course I should like to photograph him off stage, he is one of the most important jazz musicians ever.
Miles Davis Online: Even from the stage, were you able to get a good sense of what kind of person he was just by shooting photos of him performing?
Pieter Boersma: No not at all. He was, as far as I know, a very introverted person, just doing his job.
Miles Davis Online: What are you working on now?
Pieter Boersma: Working on my archive. Jazz is about 10% of my archive. I did make jazz photo’s because I love the music and I went to concerts anyway… and photography is an ultimate way of time passing. It was and is impossible to earn a living from Jazz photography.
Miles Davis Online: Favorite Miles Davis album?
Pieter Boersma: Blue Moods, 1955.
© 2012, Pieter Boersma. All artwork, and images of artwork are property of Pieter Boersma. All rights reserved.
Miles Davis Part Of Showcase Of Illustrated Portraits
Not really ‘new’, but still worth mentioning considering the terrific illustrations – especially Jorge Arevalo’s Miles Davis artwork.
via Brain Pickings / Maria Popova
Illustration Now! Portraits is a stunning new showcase of illustrated portraits by over 80 of the world’s most exciting artists, culled from Taschen‘s previously published Illustration Now! volumes, in addition to exclusive and unpublished work.
The lavish 400-page tome spans a remarkable range of media, from ink and watercolor to collage to digital illustration, and covers a wide spectrum of styles, from the minimalist to the hyper-realistic to the grotesque and beyond.
© Jorge Arevalo
Miles Davis / In Pictures
Well… it’s really all-time cool guy Steve McQueen ‘in pictures’, but Miles Davis is present. If McQueen wasn’t cool enough already, check the copy of Kind of Blue on the floor.
Nothin’ wrong with that!
And when I think of Miles Davis and Steve McQueen, I am reminded of the classic photo by Jim Marshall of the two gents backstage at the Monterey Jazz festival, 1963.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: A cooler twosome you shall not find.
Photo: Miles & Steve 1963, © Jim Marshall
The Miles Davis Stamp: Notes On A Design
I am so happy to have stumbled upon this terrific column by Greg Breeding over at Story Matters. Breeding is Creative Director of Journey Group, a creative firm that specializes in design, publishing, content, and just being all-around super creative.
Breeding writes about his recent assignment to design the stamps commemorating both Miles Davis and Edith Piaf, joint issuance between the United States Postal Service and the French La Poste. We’ve been excited about the stamp from the moment we posted the news a few weeks back. And now we have the opportunity to appreciate the design process that produced both stamps.
Here are a two excerpts from Breeding’s excellent story about his design experience with the Miles Davis stamp:
But I became almost instantly bored with the idea of portraiture, and my sketching made me wonder if there were a way to capture Miles and Edith performing. It was then that I remembered an iconic image of Miles playing his trumpet from the early 1960s, and — thanks to our friends from Google — I had the image on my desktop in moments.
To be perfectly honest, once the idea of using this iconic image came to mind, I tossed the sketchbook aside.
I was struck by the way Miles often leaned back while playing the trumpet and the way Edith used her body and hands to express her voice. I picked up my sketchbook again to explore how I could make use of their unique body language, to see if some visual organization could emerge. To my delight, pencil strokes helped me discover a simple parallel structure to hold these disparate figures together.
Miles Davis, Music Discovery and ColorHits
In my daily, inspired pursuit of music discovery – both new and old -, I am most grateful for the many online platforms built to help me discover and share music. New to my arsenal of music discovery tools is ColorHits, a rather unique way to discover and connect to music.
Shifting his web and graphic design talents to the music discovery space, ColorHits founder Matt Barrett has built a powerful discovery tool that provides the user a color search of album art for more than 2 million albums – with new titles added every week. Still in Beta, ColorHits is designed so users can preview tracks, download from iTunes and share on Facebook and Twitter.
I recently spoke with Barrett about his music discovery endeavor. He was also happy to use Miles Davis as an example of how ColorHits was designed to help explore new music by connecting color similarities in album art.
I mentioned that ColorHits is still in Beta, but early access is currently available. Definitely drop by ColorHits to sign up and request your invite to take a closer look at the music discovery tool.
Click HERE to sign-up!
Miles Davis Online: What is the story behind how – and why – you developed ColorHits?
Matt Barrett: ColorHits was actually not my first attempt at creating a new way to discover music. It started when the Beatles were first introduced on iTunes and all the fan-fare that came with it. It had its own press conference, it took over the apple website… it all seemed a bit much to me. I was first thinking of a way to mock such an extravagant music launch, creating oddly-named, fake bands that would be a ‘daily deal’ approach to new bands. Humor was the main purpose but another use was to connect people to real bands in iTunes based off the fake band name. It sounds ridiculous describing it now and, at the time, I realized it would require a lot of creative power on my part.
During this exploration period, I came across one piece of album art that ultimately lead me to continue with ColorHits as it exists today. The album was Kanye West’s 808s and Heartbreak. I noticed the color bar on the left side and thought, what if those colors were a summary of the colors in the album art. Of course for this example, that isn’t the case, but I thought to myself, ‘what other albums use those same colors?’ Rewind 2 years and I was actually working on code for a separate project that did just that. I mashed both of them together and ColorHits was born.
The Miles Davis Movie: A New Unofficial Teaser Poster To Enjoy
Our friend Michael Stadtlender has designed seven really outstanding unofficial teaser poster designs for Don Cheadle’s Miles Davis Biopic. It’s a pleasure for me to publish the work on Miles Davis Online.
If I’m the person down the road charged with marketing the film, I would absolutely seek out talents like Stadtlender, along with Julien Trédan-Turini and Heath Killen, who each contributed awesome teaser poster designs, and devise some kind of design contest/workshop/whatever that utilizes the skill of artists who clearly have a love for design and Miles Davis.
But that is a discussion for another time.
Here we have Stadtlender’s latest – and it rocks! We wish the movie was opening summer 2012!! What I like is how Stadtlender plays with all sorts of visual styles from one design to another; a touch of modern here, a tip of the cap to the legendary Saul Bass there – a nice variety of color, design and concept.
I added a gallery below of all eight teaser poster designs. But here is the latest.
© Michael Stadtlender
The Miles Davis Online Interview: Jose Mardi
(Artist Series Volume 18)
I cannot say I know much about collage art. But after viewing the delightful work of Jose Mardi, I definitely want to know more, see more. And there is no better place to start enjoying sensational collage artwork than on Mardi’s Flickr page, which features dozens and dozens of brilliant, jazz and soul inspired collage art.
The three Miles Davis collages, one above and one below, are excellent, which is an obvious declaration. But to explore Mardi’s unique artistry is quite exciting, like a visual jolt to the eyes and mind. Each collage is a cool assemblage of colors and photos, words and designs.
The many collage designs are downright inspiring. After awhile I get the impulse to start experimenting with this technique of visual art. But for now I will leave the collage art to talented professionals like Jose Mardi. Based in Valencia, Spain, the artist was so kind recently to chat with me about his craft, inspiration, and Miles Davis.
Miles Davis Online: How would you describe the ‘style’ of your artwork?
Jose Mardi: I work with the technique of collage, freestyle. I use paper, scissors, cutter and glue. No computer, no scan, or anything that has to do with digital manipulation. Jazz images from the 20s to 60s inspire me, photography and album covers and teachers who created an iconography for life. My collages can be understood as a tribute to them. With all the respect I have for their work.
Miles Davis Online: Why Miles Davis?
Jose Mardi: I use lots of different artists. But with Miles it’s impossible not to admit his image is iconic, his work is the work of life surrounding jazz. It is for any jazz lover a starting point, a continuity or change, a lot different things that inspire us and make us better people.
For my work, any of his classic photos could make me sit for hours composing new images, new perspectives that are often nonsensical – and new ways of understanding music.
Miles Davis Online: You feature so many wonderful musicians – and plenty of jazz artists. Would you say there is something unique about jazz musicians that make them such compelling subjects for your artwork?
Jose Mardi: Although what I said about Miles Davis is special, it could be about other musicians. Images taken by William Claxton and Herman Leonard, the designs of Reid Miles, or Steinweiss, among many others, are so faithful to what the music represents, sometimes I’m scared to manipulate their work. But my love of jazz helps and motivates me.
I like the spontaneity of the work. Not everything has to be perfect.
Miles Davis Online: Are you working on anything special at the moment?
Jose Mardi: Every day I think of joining pieces of paper to create some new jazz collage that someone might like. I am currently working on a series of collages around the blues.
Miles Davis Online: Obviously music plays a large role in your work. Can you talk about your musical influences and how they have impacted your work as an artist?
Jose Mardi: I’m a big music fan. Mainly, during the last two decades, Afro-American roots music. Blues, jazz and soul and their younger siblings. The music has inspired me to live and grow. Last year I closed my record store where I worked for eleven years – but I am still part of the business of music.
For my collage work I decided to start with the images of jazz because it is the most likely offered to me. In my daily life, including my work on collages, a lot of big names and much less known musicians helped build my work. Lee Morgan, Coltrane, Eddie Jefferson, Art Blakey, Tyrone Washington, Carmell Jones, Lorez Alexandria… it’s impossible to name only a few. Not too mention soul music, of which I have real passion.
Miles Davis Online: Will you revisit Miles Davis again?
Jose Mardi: Definitely, yes. I have only to find good images to use.
Miles Davis Online: Favorite Miles Davis album?
Jose Mardi: Difficult question. I like his Blue Note, Columbia or Prestige records, but one reference still to me is “Birth of the Cool” on Capitol.
* You can see more of Jose Mardi’s artwork on Flickr.
Artwork is © Jose Mardi
miles davis online 