3 cover stories in our archive
Behind the Covers' archive includes 3 album covers documented under the "ethereal" design theme, spanning the 1980s, 2010s. These covers sit within the pop, alternative, rock tradition and feature work by Lorde, XTC, Kate Bush. Each entry below includes the cover artwork, the designers and photographers behind it, and a short story about the visual choices that defined the release.
Artist Sam McKinniss painted Lorde's portrait from paparazzi photos, creating an ethereal oil painting that captures teenage angst through classical portraiture techniques. The cover transforms celebrity surveillance into fine art.
XTC's **Skylarking** cover features a mysterious double-exposed photograph that band members initially hated, calling it too "hippy-dippy" for their sophisticated pop masterpiece. The ethereal overlay technique became iconic despite the controversy.
Kate Bush herself conceived and art-directed this haunting cover, lying in silk with two Afghan hounds in a deliberate recreation of classical painting compositions. The ethereal image perfectly captured the album's mystical themes.