Famous album artwork on display in Belfast

Artwork from famous album covers dating back to the late 1800s, right up to the modern day has gone on display in the Ulster Museum.

'The Art of Selling Songs' exhibition from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London is in Belfast until September.

It is a radically updated edition of the original 1991 V&A show called The Art of Selling Songs: Graphics for the Music Business 1690-1990.

Enya, the Cranberries, the Boomtown rats, the undertones and snow patrol are all celebrated in a display called 'Overtones: Irish Music Art.'

It has been added to the V & A collection especially for Northern Ireland, as an ode to the music scene here by National Museums NI.

Among the artwork and objects in the main collection are posters advertising French and British live ‘smoking concerts’ and rare record sleeves for Louis Armstrong and Blue Mitchell.

In between are 1920s discs made from rubber, shellac and minerals, vinyls that emerged after the Second World War and the introduction of cassettes in the 1960s and CDs in the 1980s.

The exhibition also celebrates the contribution of a range of well-known artists and designers from the late 19th century to the 21st century, including Henri Gabriel Ibels, Reginald Mount, Andy Warhol, Albert Watson, Peter Saville and Julien Opie and reflects the changes in printing methods, design trends and how performers influenced how they wanted to portray their personality.

Senior Curator of Art at National Museums NI, Kim Mawhinney, says the museum team has hugely enjoyed working on the exhibition.

"From the 1960s to the 1980s there was an explosion in iconic music imagery, from psychedelic graphics to punk collages and sleek postmodernist looks. These rich and imaginative visuals were often produced by star designers attached to record companies.”

She added: "There are album covers here which the general public will see and recognise but what will be most striking are the most recent additions including the 2014 artwork for Royal Blood’s eponymous album and the 2016 record sleeve for Ash & Ice by The Kills."

"Visitors of all ages who see these will re-assess the value of the artwork displayed here which stands shoulder to shoulder with older, established classics," she said.

The Art of Selling Songs: Music Graphics from the V&A exhibition will be accompanied by a series of creative Saturday workshops and gallery talks.

The exhibition will be at the Ulster Museum until 15th September.