Cyndi Lauper and Vincent Van Gogh might seem like an odd couple… in a number of ways one could describe “odd”… but the truth is that many contemporary music stars have drawn cover art inspiration from the world of fine arts. It can be a slight reference or a straight-forward rip-off or used for comic effect. But it is amazing how well it seems to work.

On my blog today I share a few examples of cover art that connects with famous fine art. Some are as obvious as, well, “Starry Night” and other are not so much. Enjoy…

 

Jack and Meg draw a direct connection to the De Stijl art movement and its most famous contributor, Piet Mondrian (“Composition II with Red, Blue and Yellow”)

 

Heart goes for the surrealistic treatment and the same bird-in-a-cage torso motif as Rene Magritte’s “The Therapist”

 

Those lovable Irish roques the Poques cast themselves as the hopeless crew upon “The Raft of Medusa” (Theodore Gericault)

 

Those lovable Canadian Crash Test Dummies pull a Poques with Titian’s “Bacchus and Ariadne”

 

While more of a reference, there is no denying the connection of the-entrails-becoming-the-extrails between Florence and Frida (“The Two Kahlo’s”)

 

Joni Mitchell’s album cover comprises a few Van Gogh self-portrait elements but most noticeably the “Self-Portrait with a Bandaged Ear”

 

New Order’s album cover designer wasn’t shy in nearly ripping off the old order of design by Fortunato Depero and his “Futurist Poster”

 

It’s more than a rumour that Fleetwood Mac’s album cover for “Tango in the Night” borrows heavily from the work of Henri Rousseau (“Charmeuse De Serpent”)