Guy Peellaert (6 April 1934 – 17 November 2008) was a Belgian artist, painter, illustrator, comic artist and photographer, most famous for the book ''Rock Dreams'', and his

album cover An album cover (also referred to as album art) is the front packaging art of a commercially released album, studio album or other audio recordings. The term can refer to: * the printed paperboard covers typically used to package: ** sets of a ...

s for rock artists like

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

(''

Diamond Dogs ''Diamond Dogs'' is the eighth studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released on 24 May 1974 through RCA Records. Bowie produced the album and recorded it in early 1974 in London and the Netherlands, following the disbanding o ...

'') and

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

(''

It's Only Rock 'n Roll ''It's Only Rock 'n Roll'' is the twelfth studio album by English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 18 October 1974 by Rolling Stones Records. It was the last album to feature guitarist Mick Taylor; the songwriting and recording of th ...

''). He also designed film posters for films like ''

Taxi Driver ''Taxi Driver'' is a 1976 American neo-noir psychological drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Paul Schrader. Set in a morally decaying New York City following the Vietnam War, it stars Robert De Niro as veteran Marine and ...

'' (1976), ''

Paris, Texas Paris is a city and county seat of Lamar County, Texas, United States. Located in Northeast Texas at the western edge of the Piney Woods, the population of the city was 24,171 in 2020. History Present-day Lamar County was part of Red River ...

'' (1984), and ''

Short Cuts ''Short Cuts'' is a 1993 American comedy-drama film, directed by Robert Altman. Filmed from a screenplay by Altman and Frank Barhydt, it is inspired by nine short stories and a poem by Raymond Carver. The film is set in Los Angeles, in contr ...

'' (1993). The band

Frankie Goes to Hollywood Frankie Goes to Hollywood were an English pop band that formed in Liverpool in 1980. They comprised Holly Johnson (vocals), Paul Rutherford (backing vocals), Mark O'Toole (bass), Brian Nash (guitar) and Peter Gill (drums). Johnson and Ruther ...

took their name from Peellaert's painting, titled ''Frank Sinatra'', which featured the headline "Frankie Goes Hollywood".

Biography

Peellaert was born into an aristocratic family, but left home at an early age. He studied fine arts in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

, and became heavily influenced by American and British pop culture, film noir and pulp literature, before making his debut as a decorator for theaters and comic strip artist. His style was influenced by

psychedelic art Psychedelic art (also known as psychedelia) is art, graphics or visual displays related to or inspired by psychedelic experiences and hallucinations known to follow the ingestion of psychedelic drugs such as lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, psil ...

and Pop Art. He moved to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, where he worked variously in advertising, set design for the casino and the Crazy Horse nightclub, film and television. His comic strip, '' Les Aventures de Jodelle'', was published in 1966 in the controversial French magazine

Hara-Kiri , also known as , is a form of Japanese ritualistic suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honor, but was also practiced by other Japanese people during the Shōwa era (particularly officers near t ...

. The

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a ...

, Jodelle, was modelled after singer

Sylvie Vartan Sylvie Vartan (; born Sylvie Georges Vartanian on 15 August 1944) is a Bulgarians in France, Bulgarian-French singer and actress. She is known as one of the most productive and tough-sounding yé-yé artists. Her performances often featured ela ...

. A year later in 1967 he made his second pop art comic book

Pravda ''Pravda'' ( rus, Правда, p=ˈpravdə, a=Ru-правда.ogg, 'Truth') is a Russian broadsheet newspaper, and was the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, when it was one of the most in ...

, also prepublished in Hara Kiri. The main character of this book is based on Francoise Hardy. In 1973, he collaborated with British rock journalist

Nik Cohn Nik Cohn (born 1946), also written Nick Cohn, is a British writer. Life and career Cohn was born in London, England and brought up in Derry in Northern Ireland. He is the son of historian Norman Cohn and Russian writer Vera Broido. An incomer ...

on the best-selling book ''Rock Dreams'', which reportedly sold a million copies after it was published the following year. The book consisted of Peellaert's visual illustrations which celebrated and exaggerated the rebel heritage of pop music and, particularly,

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

, with commentary by Cohn. Many of the original artworks were bought by actor

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. Nicholson is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of the 20th century, often playing rebels fighting against the social structure. Over his five-de ...

. After the success of ''Rock Dreams'', Peellaert became perhaps best known for his rock album covers. He designed covers for

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

(''

It's Only Rock 'n' Roll ''It's Only Rock 'n Roll'' is the twelfth studio album by English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 18 October 1974 by Rolling Stones Records. It was the last album to feature guitarist Mick Taylor; the songwriting and recording of the ...

''),

(''

''),

Étienne Daho Étienne Daho (; ; born 14 January 1956) is a French singer-songwriter. He has released a number of synth-driven and rock- surf influenced pop hit singles since 1981. Career Daho was born in Oran, French Algeria. He sings in a low, whispery vo ...

(''Pour nos vies martiennes''),

Lio Lio or LIO may refer to: People *Lio (singer) (born 1962), Belgian singer and actress * Leonel Cunha Guerra (born 1987), Portuguese football player known as Lio * Lee Hyung-sang, nickname Lio (1985), South Korean football player * L.I.O. Petrodol ...

(''Wandatta''), and others. He painted in a very

photorealistic Photorealism is a genre of art that encompasses painting, drawing and other graphic media, in which an artist studies a photograph and then attempts to reproduce the image as realistically as possible in another medium. Although the term can b ...

style and often used

pastel A pastel () is an art medium that consists of powdered pigment and a binder (material), binder. It can exist in a variety of forms, including a stick, a square, a pebble, and a pan of color, among other forms. The pigments used in pastels are ...

. The album cover of David Bowie's ''

'' (1974) met with controversy. The cover art features Bowie as a striking half-man, half-dog grotesque. It was controversial as the full painting clearly showed the hybrid's

genitalia A sex organ, also known as a reproductive organ, is a part of an organism that is involved in sexual reproduction. Sex organs constitute the primary sex characteristics of an organism. Sex organs are responsible for producing and transporting ...

. Very few copies of this original cover made their way into circulation at the time of the album's release. According to the record-collector publication '' Goldmine'' price guides, these albums have been among the most expensive record collectibles of all time, as high as thousands of US dollars for a single copy. The genitalia were quickly

airbrush An airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that atomizes and sprays various media, most often paint, but also ink, dye, and make-up. Spray painting developed from the airbrush and is considered to employ a type of airbrush. History Up unt ...

ed out for the 1974 LP's gatefold sleeve. The original, unedited artwork appeared in a double-page spread of the June 1974 issue of ''

Creem ''Creem'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American rock music magazine and entertainment company, founded in Detroit, whose initial print run lasted from 1969 to 1989. It was first published in March 1969 by Barry Kramer and founding editor ...

'' magazine and later appeared on several re-releases of the album. Peellaert also created another painting for the ''Diamond Dogs'' album, which reproduces a photograph taken for the album by Terry O'Neill. It depicts Bowie in a cordobes hat, holding on to the leash of a leaping

Great Dane The Great Dane is a German list of dog breeds, breed of large mastiff-sighthound, which descends from hunting dogs of the Middle Ages used to hunt bears, wild boar, and deer. They were also used as guardian dogs of German nobility. It is one o ...

dog. The painting placed the scene within a skyline of skyscrapers that fit within the album's theme of a future city. The painting was intended for the inner gatefold of the ''Diamond Dogs'' album but was rejected for the same reason as Peellaert's other painting for the album, its depiction of the Mastiff's genitalia. Instead, in 1974, when the ''Diamond Dogs'' album was first released, it was printed as a 17.5"x32", lithographic poster, by Mainman, the production company established in 1972 by David Bowie's manager, Tony Defries. It was only available for a few years by direct sale and only through Mainman's Bowie fan club. As such, the poster is quite rare and valuable. A copy is held in the collection of the New York City's

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...

(object # 177.2012). Peellaert also designed film posters for films like ''

(by

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

), ''

'' (by

Robert Altman Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He is considered an enduring figure from the New Hollywood era, known for directing subversive and sat ...

), ''

L'argent ("Money") is the eighteenth novel in the '' Rougon-Macquart'' series by Émile Zola. It was serialized in the periodical '' Gil Blas'' beginning in November 1890 before being published in novel form by Charpentier et Fasquelle in March 1891. T ...

'' (by

Robert Bresson Robert Bresson (; 25 September 1901 – 18 December 1999) was a French film director. Known for his ascetic approach, Bresson made a notable contribution to the art of cinema; his non-professional actors, Ellipsis (narrative device), ellipses, an ...

), ''

'' and ''

Wings of Desire ''Wings of Desire'' (, ; ) is a 1987 romantic fantasy film written by Wim Wenders, Peter Handke and Richard Reitinger, and directed by Wenders. The film is about invisible, immortal angels who populate Berlin and listen to the thoughts of its hu ...

'' (by

Wim Wenders Ernst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders (; born 14 August 1945) is a German filmmaker and photographer, who is a major figure in New German Cinema. Among the honors he has received are prizes from the Cannes Film Festival, Cannes, Venice International Film ...

) He also designed programme titles for television shows on the French TV channel

Antenne 2 France 2 () is a French free-to-air public television channel. The flagship channel of France Télévisions, it broadcasts generalist programming including news, entertainment (such as dramas, films, and game shows), factual programmes, and sp ...

in 1982. Peellaert and Cohn collaborated again on ''20th-Century Dreams'' in 1999, with illustrations of political and world historical figures. His work has been exhibited internationally and magazines like

Les Inrockuptibles ''Les Inrockuptibles'' (), abbreviated as ''Les Inrocks'', is a French cultural magazine. Started as a monthly in 1986, it became weekly in 1995. As of 2021, it returned to a monthly format. In the beginning, rock music was the magazine's prim ...

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

and Vanity Fair have praised his work. He died at the age of 74 of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

Bibliography

*''Jodelle'', 1966 (English reprint by

Fantagraphics Fantagraphics (previously Fantagraphics Books) is an American publisher of alternative comics, classic comic strip anthologies, manga, magazines, graphic novels, and (formerly) the Erotic comics, erotic Eros Comix imprint. They have managed sev ...

in 2013) *''Pravda'', 1968 *''Rock Dreams'', 1973 *''The Big Room'', 1986

References

External links

Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peellaert, Guy 1934 births 2008 deaths Belgian comics artists Belgian illustrators Belgian graphic designers Belgian erotic artists Pop artists Belgian poster artists Belgian album-cover and concert-poster artists Artists from Brussels Deaths from cancer in France Belgian male painters 20th-century Belgian painters