Through the Prism: Untold Rock Stories from the Hipgnosis Archive

by Aubrey Powell

The most intriguing stories of creative endeavor, volatile relationships, excessive lifestyles, and bizarre events from the world of rock, as told by Hipgnosis cofounder, creative designer, photographer, and filmmaker Aubrey Powell. Founded in 1967 by Aubrey “Po” Powell, Storm Thorgerson, and Peter Christopherson, graphic design firm Hipgnosis gained legendary status by transforming the look of album art through their designs for AC/DC, Black Sabbath, the Police, Genesis, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Syd Barrett, and the Who. In this lively volume, Powell presents brutally honest, entertaining, and revealing insider stories from the world of rock, featuring an eclectic cast of pop stars, comedians, actors, managers, gangsters, and inspirational world gures from 1966 on. His thrilling narrative is packed with anecdotes―from the founding of Hipgnosis to surviving drugs busts―and is richly illustrated with Hipgnosis artwork and Powell’s own photographs. Drama and creativity are the common threads throughout this unique account. With candor and insightful reflection, Powell reveals how the final color artwork for Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy was created; how the most iconic album cover of all time― The   Dark Side Of The Moon ―came about; and how the 2017 Pink Floyd retrospective became the most successful music exhibition ever mounted by the Victoria and Albert Museum, despite the deeply antagonistic and dysfunctional relationship between Roger Waters and David Gilmour. Throughout, Powell exposes how the trappings of fame and glory upset the balance of everyday life, bringing creativity and destruction in equal measure. Packed with exciting insider stories and anecdotes featuring famous musicians, managers, and actors, Through the Prism is a must-have for music and pop-culture fans. 150 color illustrations

Genres: Music, Design

320 pages, Hardcover

Published February 15, 2022

Reviews

[Fred]

If you're a child of "the rock era", you're familiar with the images of the mysterious design studio, Hipgnosis. Gracing dozens of the highest-profile blockbuster albums of the 70's and 80's, the surreal sharp-focus imagery of Aubrey Powell and Storm Thorgeson came to define an era as much as the music their art was commissioned to promote. "Po" makes for a welcoming guide through decades of improbable ideas made real, leading from one unlikely adventure in search of the perfect shot to the next (if you think coming up with something like the famous Pink Floyd flying pig or getting a statuette atop a mountain for Paul McCartney is easy, think again). I'm eagerly waiting the release of the documentary "Squaring the Circle" directed by arguably Po & Storm's heir, Anton Corbijn. This was a fascinating peek at a bygone era with a raconteur's ear for spinning a good yarn. The photo reprints of their legendary album covers and unused designs will have you rushing to your record collection.

[Jaco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heerlijke 'saucerful' met anekdotes over de totstandkoming van iconische platenhoezen van onder andere Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel en Led Zeppelin. Verwacht geen diepgravende analyses, maar wel een smeuïg kijkje terug in de tijd. Bonus: de hardcover is prachtig vormgegeven, met veel archiefbeelden.

[Antoni · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first thing that comes to mind when I think about this book is the way it was published – absolutely fabulous! The font used, the cover, the paper on which it was printed, the gradient colour on the side, along with all the other visual aspects, blend perfectly in order to create a very aesthetic reading experience. You can tell the book itself is yet another work of Hipgnosis.
Regarding the contents, I found it worthwhile, yet not extraordinary. Some of the stories where more interesting, especially for fans of Pink Floyd such as myself, whereas some I quickly read through without being too involved. It isn’t necessarily a negative remark as I understand that the stories presented have a more wider range, and you can’t satisfy everyone. Nevertheless, some of them were undoubtedly riveting and the book could be a real page-turner. My favourite anecdote is probably the one about travelling to the Swiss mountains in order to photograph an album cover for Paul McCartney. It felt so surreal to think all that happened just for one picture and it did give off a mission impossible vibe. There were many other engrossing stories, but this one stuck with me the most.
Another, kind of inspirational, thing about these stories is reliving the very beginning of Hipgnosis. Seeing how Po and Storm started from scratch and through their passion, perseverance and hard work managed to climb to the pinnacle of album cover art was really exciting. It is fascinating to think that it all began in Cambridge when they were just passionate teenagers with a dream. Additionally, the book reminded me of my passion for photography and now I’m looking forward to rediscovering the joy of grasping an idea, a moment or a concept in a single frame.
Overall, I highly recommend reading the book to anyone interested either in rock music and/or photography, art and design. Although sometimes there were some less action-filled moments, it was an interesting journey and I don’t regret it.

[Ray Smillie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warts and all from Po about the successes and failures of Hipgnosis, the never give up attitude from Storm and the lengths (and expense) they went to in creating the perfect images for their clients. Includes archive photos and illustrations from his own collection. Never a dull moment.

[Harold · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of interesting stories, well told, and it looks beautiful. It ends with an account of the V & A exhibition Their Mortal Remains, which I was lucky to have visited. Interesting exhibition about Hipgnosis in the Groninger Museum, too.