Post, Post | ELECTRONIC*A

Björk’s unforgettable album cover for her second studio album “Post” is often regarded as one the greatest of all time. An unforgettable landmark of the electronica era, the album cover’s creator - Craig Hewitt - tells us a bit about the process in this short Q&A.

How did the opportunity present itself to you?

I was one of the chief designers at Me Company. I worked on The Sugarcubes’ last album “Stick Around for Joy”, because of this - I was given Björk’s “Post” album to design.

What was the concept? I’ve heard through the grapevine it was inspired by Piccadilly Circus?

The brief was that Björk was travelling the world because of “Debut,” and writing letters and postcards to family and friends. That’s what “Post” was about. It was more global than Piccadilly Circus: Times Square, Shinjuku Square, etc. That’s why her jacket, designed by Hussein Chalayan, looks like the edges of airmail envelopes. The placards in the background of the cover photo are a mix of found images and graphics, designed by me and a colleague, to represent postcards.

Tell me about the process.

I really enjoyed it. Sadly, I was too busy to go to the photoshoot. Once the photos came in I chose the colour scheme based on the cover image.

The response has been amazing. It’s widely regarded as one of the best album covers of all time. How does that make you feel?

At the time, I had no idea how big it would become. It’s so nice to hear that from people now. Designers at Me Company weren’t permitted to put names in the credits, so no one knew I was involved. That’s why I put myself out there now. People have been so sweet with the comments. Sometimes I get quite emotional from it all, as they come from all over the world, young and old.