Barbara Wojirsch

Barbara Wojirsch (born 1940) is a German graphic designer known primarily for developing the visual style for album covers released by ECM Records.

Early life

Wojirsch studied painting at the Stuttgart Academy of Fine Arts.^[1] A realization that there are many good painters in the world led her to take up advertising for a short time, but she was disillusioned with the idea of telling people “things that aren’t true.”^[2]

ECM Records

In 1970, Wojirsch and her husband Burkhardt began designing covers for ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music), Manfred Eicher’s newly formed jazz recording label headquartered in Munich.^[2][3] The couple jointly signed their work B & B Wojirsch in a collaboration that continued until Burkhardt’s untimely death in the mid 1970s. After her husband's death, Wojirsch continued to work for ECM.^[4] In 1978 photographer Dieter Rehm joined ECM’s staff.^[2] By the time Wojirsch retired in the mid 1990s, she had designed more than 200 covers for ECM recording artists including Chick Corea, David Holland, Keith Jarrett, Pat Metheny and Steve Reich.^[4][5]

Wojirsch’s distinct aesthetic approach rooted in minimalism and modernism ^[6][7] complemented the clear, pristine sounds that are Eicher’s signature.^[3][8][9] The influence of modern artists including Cy Twombly is evident in some of her designs, particularly on covers like Pat Metheny’s Rejoicing.^[2][6][3] Her distinct handwriting serves as the central graphic for a variety of albums including 80/81 by Pat Metheny Group and Tribute by Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette.^[1][7] In 1978, Wojirsch’s design for the Steve Kuhn album, Non-Fiction, was a nominee in the 21st Grammy Awards.^[10]

References

1. Thorgerson, Storm (1999). 100 best album covers : [the stories behind the sleeves]. Aubrey Powell (1st American ed.). London: DK Pub. ISBN 0-7894-4951-X. OCLC 41256235.
2. "Eye Magazine | Feature | Think of your ears as eyes". Eye Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
3. "ECM—A Cultural Anthology". Aperture. 2013-03-14. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
4. "Eye Magazine | Feature | One man brand?". Eye Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
5. "B & B Wojirsch". Discogs. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
6. Kh, Anoushka; wala (2021-04-28). "The Female Graphic Designers Muted by the Music Industry". ELEPHANT. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
7. Cooke, Mervyn (2017). Pat Metheny : the ECM years, 1975-1984. New York. ISBN 978-0-19-989768-1. OCLC 988773323.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
8. The Cambridge companion to Arvo Pärt. Andrew Shenton. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2012. ISBN 978-1-107-00989-9. OCLC 778445186.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
9. Bares, William (2011). "Sounds of Silence: The Politics and Poetics of Norwegian Jazz". American Music Review. 41 (1).
10. www.grammy.com https://www.grammy.com/awards/21st-annual-grammy-awards. Retrieved 2023-03-24. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)