Christophe Szpajdel (; born 29 September 1970) is a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

-born international

calligraphist Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

and illustrator, principally known for

designing A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

band Band or BAND may refer to: Places *Bánd, a village in Hungary *Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran *Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania * Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, I ...

logos.

Life

Szpajdel was born on 29 September 1970 in

Gembloux Gembloux (; wa, Djiblou; nl, Gembloers, ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 21,964 inhabitants. The total area is 95.86 km², yielding a population dens ...

Namur Namur (; ; nl, Namen ; wa, Nameur) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is both the capital of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namu ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, and grew up in

Louvain-la-Neuve Louvain-la-Neuve (, French for ''New Leuven''; wa, Li Noû Lovén) is a planned town in the municipality of Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, Wallonia, Belgium, situated 30 km southeast of Brussels, in the province of Walloon Brabant. The town was ...

Walloon Brabant Walloon Brabant (french: Brabant wallon ; nl, Waals-Brabant ; wa, Roman Payis) is a province located in Belgium's French-speaking region of Wallonia. It borders on (clockwise from the North) the province of Flemish Brabant (Flemish Region) and ...

, Belgium. His parents are of

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

origin but immigrated to Belgium before he was born. He grew up speaking

and French, and eventually learned English, German,

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, Italian,

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

and Spanish. Szpajdel began drawing at the age of 3 when he drew a

praying mantis Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They ha ...

while vacationing with his parents in the south of France. From 1981 to 1989, he attended the Institut Saint-Jean Baptiste, a Catholic primary school in

Wavre Wavre (; nl, Waver, ; wa, Wåve) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, capital of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. Wavre is in the Dijle, Dyle valley. Most ...

, Walloon Brabant, Belgium. His parents were originally against his ambitions of becoming a calligraphist and insisted on his continual education and enrollment in a university. In 1989, Szpajdel enrolled at the

Université catholique de Louvain The Université catholique de Louvain (also known as the Catholic University of Louvain, the English translation of its French name, and the University of Louvain, its official English name) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university. It ...

where he studied

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

agronomy Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants by agriculture for food, fuel, fiber, chemicals, recreation, or land conservation. Agronomy has come to include research of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and ...

and

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

, graduating in 1996 with a degree in Forestry Engineering. It was during his first year of university that Szpajdel joined Thierry Prince's fanzine ''Septicore'', as a writer and illustrator. Some of his early illustrations were featured on the ''Morbid Noise'' various artists compilation

cassette tape The Compact Cassette or Musicassette (MC), also commonly called the tape cassette, cassette tape, audio cassette, or simply tape or cassette, is an analog magnetic tape recording format for audio recording and playback. Invented by Lou Ottens ...

s that came with the fanzines. ''Septicore'' released six issues between 1989 and 1991, though two had already been published at the time that Szpajdel joined the team. During his time working at Septicore, Szpajdel was often credited under the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

s Necromaniac, and later Volvox. A seventh issue of ''Septicore'' was in development for release in 1992 but was abandoned before completion. Szpajdel moved from Belgium to England in 2002. Since 2006, he has been residing in

Stoke Hill Stoke Hill is a large hill rising to the north of Exeter in Devon, England. It is significant as the site of both an Iron Age hill fortR. R. Sellman, ''Aspects of Devon History'' (Devon Books, 1985), p. 11 (map). and a later Roman Roman or Rom ...

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Although he spends over 30 hours a week drawing, he continues to work a day job as a retail assistant for the Co-op Food convenience store chain around Exeter.

Career

Szpajdel's most prolific logos include ones designed for

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

band Disgrace in 1990,

black metal Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with t ...

band

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

in 1992,

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

in 2015, hip hop artist

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...

(designed especially for her

MTV Video Music Award The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...

s appearance and following

Anti World Tour The Anti World Tour (stylized as ANTI World Tour) was the seventh concert tour by Barbadian singer Rihanna, in support of her eighth studio album, '' Anti'' (2016). The tour was announced on November 15, 2015 and began on March 12, 2016, in Ja ...

) and

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

band

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

, both in 2016. He has also illustrated logos for posters of such films as ''Mandy'' and ''Lords of Chaos'' (both 2018) and ''The Tell Tale Heart'' (2020). Since designing his first professional band logo for Belgian death metal band Morbid Death (featuring members that would later play in

Enthroned Enthroned is a Belgian black metal band formed in Charleroi. It is one of the premier acts of the Belgian black metal scene. History The band was founded in 1993 by drummer Cernunnos. He soon recruited guitarist Tsebaoth and a vocalist from g ...

) in 1988, Szpajdel estimates to have drawn over 10,000 logos, mainly within the black metal, death metal and dark ambient music scenes. The significant amount of work that Szpajdel has done in the

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

has led him to be nicknamed, originally by a fan in 2006, the Lord of the Logos. This

sobriquet A sobriquet ( ), or soubriquet, is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another, that is descriptive. A sobriquet is distinct from a pseudonym, as it is typically a familiar name used in place of a real name, without the need of expla ...

was reinforced when he authored a book of the same name, ''Lord of the Logos: Designing the Metal Underground'',

published Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

in January 2010 through . The book showcases a selection of 2500 of his illustrations from over the years, accompanied by photographs taken by Szpajdel. ''Lord of the Logos: Designing the Metal Underground'' was successful enough for a sequel, titled ''Archaic Modernism: The Art of Christophe Szpajdel'', publication through Heavy Music Artwork on 16 December 2020. When first announced in the 2010s, the second book's title was tentatively titled ''Ancient Modernism''; once it was picked up for publishing by Heavy Music Artwork, it was given a release date for September 2020 but was pushed back by several months. Szpajdel's illustrations and interviews have also appeared in the books ''Logos from Hell: A Compendium of Death and Black Metal Logos'' (2008, re-printed 2015; Doomentia Press), ''Black Metal: Beyond the Darkness'' (2012;

Black Dog Publishing Black Dog Publishing was a British publishing company specialising in illustrated non-fiction books on contemporary culture. Topics covered by Black Dog include architecture, art, craft, design, environment, fashion, film, music and photograph ...

), ''Black Metal: Evolution of the Cult'' (2013,

Feral House Feral House is an American book publisher founded in 1989 by Adam Parfrey and based in Port Townsend, Washington. Early history The company's first book was '' The Satanic Witch'' (1989; originally published in 1971 by Dodd, Mead & Company) by A ...

), ''Darkadya: The Book of Art From Below Vol. 2'' (2016, Darkadya Books) and ''Arte Arcana'' (2018; Heavy Music Artwork), and have been featured in such magazine as

Metal Maniacs ''Metal Maniacs'' was an American magazine that was based around heavy metal music. History Founded in 1989 by Mike 'G' Greenblatt and Katherine Ludwig of Metal Shop. Where its sister publication ''Metal Edge'' largely covered glam metal, ''Meta ...

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...

Terrorizer Terrorizer is an American grindcore band formed in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. After disbanding, its members gained recognition by playing in influential extreme metal bands, such as Morbid Angel ( David Vincent, Pete Sandoval), Napalm D ...

and

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

. Szpajdel was also the subject of a documentary, appropriately titled ''Lord of the Logos'', which explores his life and work as cult artist and his decades-long career designing logos for the metal underground. The 12-minute documentary was

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

by Luke J. Hagan and had its United Kingdom

premiere A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition. A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its first ...

on 2 December 2016 at the Two Short Nights Film Festival. The documentary had its United States premiere in August 2017 at the

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

Underground Film Festival, and has most recently been shown again in the United Kingdom at the Homegrown Shorts festival, held at the Curzon Cinema & Arts on 27 March 2019. Szpajdel has also appeared and collaborated with such prominent heavy metal documentaries as ''

Until the Light Takes Us ''Until the Light Takes Us'' is an American documentary film about early Norwegian black metal by directors Aaron Aites and Audrey Ewell. The film premiered at the AFI Film Festival in 2008, a year before it was released in film theaters. Feat ...

'', which was released in 2008 and documents the black metal music scene, and SWR Barroselas Metalfest's ''The 15th Rebellion of the Steel Warriors'', released in 2014.

Style

Szpajdel has cited

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

and

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

as major influences in his drawing style. He coined the term ''depressiv'moderne'' to categorize his own style. Artists often mentioned as influential include

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in the ...

Victor Horta Victor Pierre Horta (; Victor, Baron Horta after 1932; 6 January 1861 – 8 September 1947) was a Belgian architect and designer, and one of the founders of the Art Nouveau movement. His Hôtel Tassel in Brussels, built in 1892–93, is often ...

Hector Guimard Hector Guimard (, 10 March 1867 – 20 May 1942) was a French architect and designer, and a prominent figure of the Art Nouveau style. He achieved early fame with his design for the Castel Beranger, the first Art Nouveau apartment building ...

Peter Behrens Peter Behrens (14 April 1868 – 27 February 1940) was a leading German architect, graphic and industrial designer, best known for his early pioneering AEG Turbine Hall in Berlin in 1909. He had a long career, designing objects, typefaces, and i ...

Gustav Klimt Gustav Klimt (July 14, 1862 – February 6, 1918) was an Austrian symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. Klimt is noted for his paintings, murals, sketches, and other objets d'art. Klimt's prim ...

, Timothy Pflueger, Wiliam Van Alen,

Bruce Goff Bruce Alonzo Goff (June 8, 1904 – August 4, 1982) was an American architect, distinguished by his organic, eclectic, and often flamboyant designs for houses and other buildings in Oklahoma and elsewhere. A 1951 ''Life Magazine'' article sta ...

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

Beryl Cook Beryl Cook, OBE (10 September 192628 May 2008) was a British artist best known for her original and instantly recognisable paintings. Often comical, her works pictured people whom she encountered in everyday life, including people enjoying th ...

Tamara de Lempicka Tamara Łempicka (born Tamara Rosalia Gurwik-Górska; 16 May 1898 – 18 March 1980), better known as Tamara de Lempicka, was a Polish painter who spent her working life in France and the United States. She is best known for her polished Art De ...

Works

This is an incomplete list of logos designed by Szpajdel. *

A Hill to Die Upon A Hill To Die Upon is an American blackened death metal band from the Monmouth- Galesburg area of Illinois, formed in 2004 by the brothers Adam and R. Michael Cook. The brothers initially founded the band as hardcore project, but eventually star ...

Abigail Williams Abigail Williams (born c. 1681, date of death unknown) was an 11- or 12-year-old girl who, along with nine-year-old Betty Parris, was among the first of the children to falsely accuse their neighbors of witchcraft in 1692; these accusations eve ...

* Absurd * Abyssal Frost * Acheron of Sorrow * Aeternal in Black * Agnorisis * Altars * Anamorph * The Anchor Aquarium Services * Ancient Malus * Anima Damnata * Animus Mortis * Apolokia * Araziel *

Arcturus , - bgcolor="#FFFAFA" , Note (category: variability): , , H and K emission vary. Arcturus is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Boötes. With an apparent visual magnitude of −0.05, it is the third-brightest of th ...

Behexen Behexen is a Finnish black metal band founded in 1994. They adopted a more traditional approach to black metal by incorporating raw characteristics. Their first full-length release was ''Rituale Satanum'', released in 2000 and followed by ''By ...

* Belle Rouge * Black Achemoth * The Black Hand * Blasphereion *

Blut Aus Nord Blut Aus Nord (, ) is a French black metal band from Mondeville, Calvados, that has incorporated avant-garde elements in its music. History Vindsval began a solo project, under the name "Vlad", in 1993. He released two demos before changing ...

* Book of Belial * Bouq * Brymir *

Borknagar Borknagar is a Norwegian heavy metal band from Bergen, founded in 1995 by Øystein Garnes Brun. The band's style combines black metal and folk metal with progressive and melodic elements. Borknagar's lyrics often deal with philosophy, paganis ...

* Catharist * Ceremonium * Chasma *

Corpus Christii Corpus is Latin for "body". It may refer to: Linguistics * Text corpus, in linguistics, a large and structured set of texts * Speech corpus, in linguistics, a large set of speech audio files * Corpus linguistics, a branch of linguistics Music * ...

Covenant Covenant may refer to: Religion * Covenant (religion), a formal alliance or agreement made by God with a religious community or with humanity in general ** Covenant (biblical), in the Hebrew Bible ** Covenant in Mormonism, a sacred agreement b ...

* Cryostorm * Cryptic Tales * Cursed Ruin *

Dark Fortress Dark Fortress is a German melodic black metal band from Landshut formed in 1994. They have released seven studio albums, a split album and a demo album. History Early history The band formed in 1994. In 1996 they released the demo ''R ...

* Dark Horizon Productions * Dark Storm * Darkside Of Innocence * Dawn of a Dark Age * Dawn Of Crucifixion * Deadwood Lake * Deathraid * Deborah Dean *

Desaster Desaster are a German black/thrash metal band formed in Koblenz in 1988. Their lyrical themes involve war, hate and Satanism. History Desaster formed in 1988. The band had line-up issues before Infernal, the only remaining member of the orig ...

Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...

* Disciples of the Watch * Disgrace * Deviser *

Draconian Draconian is an adjective meaning "of great severity", that derives from Draco, an Athenian law scribe under whom small offenses had heavy punishments ( Draconian laws). Draconian may also refer to: * Draconian (band), a death/doom metal band fro ...

* Dragonfly * Droefheid *

Elysium Elysium (, ), otherwise known as the Elysian Fields ( grc, Ἠλύσιον πεδίον, ''Ēlýsion pedíon'') or Elysian Plains, is a conception of the afterlife that developed over time and was maintained by some Greek religious and philos ...

Empyrium Empyrium is a German symphonic folk/ doom metal and (later) neofolk/ dark folk band. History Empyrium was founded in 1994 by Markus Stock (mostly using the pseudonym Ulf Theodor Schwadorf) and Andreas Bach, but later many other musicians pa ...

* Eternity of Darkness * Ezurate *

Falkenbach Falkenbach () is a viking metal Viking metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by a lyrical and thematic focus on Norse mythology, Norse paganism, and the Viking Age. Viking metal is quite diverse as a musical style, to the p ...

Fast Company ''Fast Company'' is a monthly American business magazine published in print and online that focuses on technology, business, and design. It publishes six print issues per year. History ''Fast Company'' was launched in November 1995 by Alan Web ...

* Filii Nigrantium Infernalium * Flagellum Dei *

Fleshgod Apocalypse Fleshgod Apocalypse is an Italian symphonic death metal band. Formed in 2007, the group resides in Perugia and are currently signed to Nuclear Blast. They have released five full-length albums. History Formation and ''Oracles'' (2007–2009) Fl ...

* Forever Mourne * Frog Mallet * The Golden Age *

Graveland Graveland are a Polish pagan black metal band which was formed in 1991 by Rob Darken (born Robert Fudali). They began as a black metal band before adopting a pagan and Viking metal style. The lyrics and imagery of Graveland are strongly inspi ...

* The Green Evening Requiem * Hantaoma * Heartbleed * Hell-Militia * Holocausto Canibal * Horacle *

Horna Horna (formerly known as Shadowed) is a Finnish black metal band that formed in 1993. The band has appeared on over thirty releases including splits, demos, EPs and albums since 1995, which have been released through numerous record labels. Th ...

* Idolatry * Illicit * Immundus *

Impiety Impiety is a perceived lack of proper respect for something considered sacred. Impiety is often closely associated with sacrilege, though it is not necessarily a physical action. Impiety cannot be associated with a cult, as it implies a larger be ...

* In The Wake Of Tragedy *

Ingested Ingestion is the consumption of a substance by an organism. In animals, it normally is accomplished by taking in a substance through the mouth into the gastrointestinal tract, such as through eating or drinking. In single-celled organisms inges ...

* Ishmael *

Judas Iscariot Judas Iscariot (; grc-x-biblical, Ἰούδας Ἰσκαριώτης; syc, ܝܗܘܕܐ ܣܟܪܝܘܛܐ; died AD) was a disciple and one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. According to all four canonical gospels, Judas betraye ...

* Jpan_arts * Kult ov Azazel * Laconist * Liar Of Golgotha * Lichway * Licurgo * Liquid Angel * Maid Room * Malice Divine * Meat Anchor *

Melechesh Melechesh is an ethnically Assyrian black metal band that originated in Jerusalem and is currently based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Ashmedi started the band as a solo project in 1993. In the following year, guitarist Moloch and drummer Lord C ...

Moonspell Moonspell is a Portuguese gothic metal band formed in 1992. The group released their first EP, ''Under the Moonspell'', in 1994 and followed up with their debut album, '' Wolfheart'', a year later. They quickly became the most recognizable meta ...

* Morbid Death * Morbid God * Morgawr * Mortal Profecia * Mystifier *

Nachtmystium Nachtmystium was an American psychedelic black metal band formed by Blake Judd, formerly known as Azentrius, and Pat McCormick. The band's name is derived from the German word '' Nacht'' meaning "night", and the made-up term ''mystium'' which re ...

* Namter *

Nargaroth Nargaroth is a German black metal band led by René "Ash" Wagner, formerly known as “Kanwulf”. History Wagner had earlier claimed that Nargaroth was formed in 1989, the seven-track instrumental demo ''Orke'' was released in 1991, and the ...

* Necro Ritual * Night Line * Ninkharsag * Nocturn Deambulation * The Obelisk * The Obliterate Plague *

Old Man's Child Old Man's Child is a Norwegian black metal band from the city of Oslo. The band is the brainchild of Galder (formerly known as Grusom; birth name: Thomas Rune Andersen) who is the only permanent member of the band. History Old Man's Child was ...

* Primigenium * Really Interesting Group *

* Sacramentary Abolishment *

Samsas Traum Samsas Traum ("Samsa's Dream") is a German rock band fronted by Alexander Kaschte. Their music consists of elements of symphonic metal, Neue Deutsche Härte, black metal and cantastoria. The name is derived from the protagonist Gregor Samsa in ...

* Sceptocrypt * Seize The Soul * Seth * Shoot Me Again * Slanesh * Slaughter Messiah *

Soulburn Soulburn is a Dutch death metal/black-doom band. History Originally Soulburn emerged after a first demise of Dutch death metal band Asphyx in the mid-90s, when founding members Eric Daniels (guitars) and Bob Bagchus (drums) looked for a separa ...

* Spheres * Starless Night * Stone Circle * Stormcrow * Trimonium *

Trivium The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric. The trivium is implicit in ''De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii'' ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but the ...

* Truth Be Told *

Tsjuder Tsjuder is a Norwegian black metal band founded in 1993. Name The name Tsjuder was picked from the Norwegian movie ''Pathfinder'' (''Veiviseren''). The Tsjuder (or Chud) was a mythical Northern Finnic tribe. History Originally from Oslo, Tsjud ...

TV3 News Virgin Media News (formerly TV3 News and then 3News Ireland) is the news division of Virgin Media Television in Ireland, owned by Liberty Global. The news division produces news and current affairs programming for free-to-air channels Virgin M ...

* UnderConsideration * Unleash * Valdyr * Visalis * Violent Virtues * Vision Eternel * Warcrab *

Witchcraft Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have us ...

* Witchmaster * With Faith Or Flames *

Wolves in the Throne Room Wolves in the Throne Room is an American black metal band formed in 2002 in Olympia, Washington, by brothers Aaron and Nathan Weaver. They have released seven full-length albums, two live albums, and one EP to date. They have stated one of the f ...

* The Wounded Kings * Zoltar

Exhibitions

Szpajdel's work has been exhibited around the world. The following list provides an (incomplete) overview.

2007

* 29 September: ''Autumn Equinox Festival'', Dingbatz, Clifton, New Jersey, United States

2009

*''Art Deco Society Exhibition'', Newport, Oregon, United States

2010

* 29 January: ''Christophe Szpajdel Mini-Exposition'', Exeter Central Library, Exeter, Devon, England * 25–30 October: ''Music and Image Festival'', Roodkapje, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

2011

* 6–21 September: ''Devon Open Studios'', North Bridge Inn, Exeter, Devon, England * 11–23 September: ''Christophe Szpajdel'', Magnum Opus Tattoo Gallery, Brighton, England * November: ''Little Krimminals'', Studio Krimm, Berlin, Germany * October–February 2012: ''Graphic Design Now in Production'', Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

2012

* October 2011-February: ''Graphic Design Now in Production'', Walker Arts Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States *January–March: ''Black Thorns in the White Cube'', Paragraph Gallery, Kansas City, Missouri, United States * January–March: ''Western Exhibitions'', Chicago, Illinois, United States *May–September: ''Graphic Design Now in Production'', Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, New York City, United States *August: ''Wacken Open Air'', Wacken, Germany * September: ''Graphic Design Now in Production'', Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, California, United States

2013

* 18 February – 1 March: Trerise Gallery, The Hoe, Plymouth, England *16 March – 1 April: Fish Factory Arts Space, Falmouth, England *June: ''Santa Maria Summer Festival'', Casa da Cultura. Beja, Alentejo, Portugal *28 September: ''Ancient Modernism'', Nature: Art + Design, Auckland, New Zealand *1 October: ''Ancient Modernism'', Rogue & Vagabond, Wellington, New Zealand *26 October: ''Aurora Infernalis Festival'', Arnhem, The Netherlands *31 October – 25 December: ''Macabre Exhibition'', The Old Press, St Austell, Cornwall, England

2014

* 13 February – 15 April: ''Impromptu'', Tobacco House, Exeter, Devon, England *22 March – 22 April: Ego Fine Art, Redondo Beach, California, United States *11 April - June: ''Inspired By Black Metal'', Ancienne Belgique, Brussels, Belgium *19 April: ''Blacken the Globe Festival'', Alice Springs, Australia *10 May: ''Crepusculum Australe Exhibition'', Rosemount Hotel, Perth, Australia *6 September: ''Gohelle Festival'', Lille, France * 3–4 October: ''Vimaranes Metallum Festival'', Guimaraes, Portugal * 3–10 October: ''Murmures D'Outre Tombe'', Nerdiest Showroom, Meltdown Comics, Los Angeles, California, United States *18 November – 2 January 2015: ''Jabberwocky & Extreme Metal Art Exhibition'', Exeter Phoenix, Exeter, Devon, England *22 November: ''Metalwarzone Festival'', Airliner, Los Angeles, California, United States

2015

* 2015: ''Marks of Metal'', Odense, Denmark * 2015: ''Walker's Graphic Design: Now in Production''

2016

* 2016: ''Words and Pictures Exhibition'', Torquay's Artizan Gallery, Devon, England

2017

* 17–30 September: ''A Journey Into The Lost Homelands Exhibition'', Kafeneio Eleftheria, Drama, Greece

2018

* February: ''The Art Of You'', Artizan Gallery, Torquay, England

References

External links

* * * * __FORCETOC__ {{DEFAULTSORT:Szpajdel, Christophe 1970 births 20th-century calligraphers 21st-century calligraphers Album-cover and concert-poster artists Belgian artists Belgian expatriates in England Belgian illustrators Belgian people of Polish descent Black metal Living people Logo designers People from Gembloux Université catholique de Louvain alumni

Life

Career

Style

Works

Exhibitions

2007

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

See also

References

Further reading

External links