Jeff Gaither
| Jeff Gaither | |
|---|---|
 Jeff Gaither 2015.jpg Gaither, with some of his work, in 2015. | |
| Born | 1960 Louisville, Kentucky |
| 🏳️ Nationality | American |
| 💼 Occupation | Artist, illustrator, graphic designer, photographer, sculptor |
Jeff Gaither is an American graphic artist that is noted for illustrations in the music industry.
History[edit]
Gaither was born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1960.[1] He credits his artistic direction to his mother, and his aunt, who were both involved in the Actors Theatre of Louisville, and in his youth bought, him copies of the film magazine, Famous Monsters of Filmland. They also took him to the horror films The Exorcist, and Night of the Living Dead.[2][3] Gaither began his artistic career by submitting his artwork to music fanzines in the 1980s, before he started working with the cartoonist and custom car artist, Ed Roth.[4] He has been practicing his particular blend of horror and rock art, which has also been described as lowbrow art, for over thirty years, and has illustrated primarily for music album covers, magazines, and zines.[5][1] Vice describes Gaither as an "internationally renowned underground artist who's celebrated for his unique and morbid horror-rock style." He has created art for the horror punk band the Misfits, the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, the rock band Van Halen, the punk rock singer GG Allin, and the hip hop horror duo Insane Clown Posse, as well as many other bands, which span many genres.[4] Gaither is also a photographer, and a sculptor.
In addition to illustrating, Gaither also studies serial killers and the culture of serial killing, and collects artifacts.[3]
Accomplishments and accolades[edit]
Gaither has illustrated for over four hundred album covers.[4] He has also made over twenty five hundred magazine and fanzine covers, and his artwork appears on posters, prints, clothing, skateboards, skis, glassware, stickers, magazines, and book covers.[2] His work appears in the 2004 book, Art of Modern Rock: The Poster Explosion.
Sal Canzonieri, the founder of the heavy metal band Electric Frankenstein says that "Jeff is able to show a sense of humor and a strong connection to the cherished cultural imagery of our youth that draw you into his wild and wooly illustrations."[1]
Bibliography[edit]
- Citations
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Berkowitz 2011.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Everson 2009.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Gibson 2015.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Ferranti 2015.
- ↑ Maximumrocknroll Staff 1993.
- Sources
- Berkowitz, Peter (20 July 2011), "B-sides", Louisville Eccentric Observer, retrieved 13 June 2019
- Everson, Zach (21 July 2009), "Louisville's Jeff Gaither's 'art for the criminally insane' goes local, gets fine", Louisville.com, retrieved 12 June 2019
- Ferranti, Seth (11 October 2015), "Inside the Twisted Mind and Artwork of Jeff Gaither", Vice, retrieved 12 June 2015
- Gibson, Kevin (28 October 2015), "Serial Killer Culture: Jeff Gaither's dark obsession inspires his art and fandom", Louisville Eccentric Observer, retrieved 12 June 2019
- Maximumrocknroll Staff (1993), "Sno, The Stalin, The Queers, Oswald Five", Maximumrocknroll (127), p. 8, OCLC 10553172, retrieved 12 June 2019
External links[edit]
- Official website
- Jeff Gaither discography at Discogs
- Interview with Jeff Gaither on Murder Metal Mayhem at Buzzsprout
