Hasta La Ideas

The history of Sony Music is charted in a typographic timeline installed in the company’s London HQ, created by designer Alex Fowkes…

The huge wall graphic (with shades of Lou Dorfsman’s famous Gastrotypographicalassemblage perhaps?) features the names of nearly 1,000 artists signed to the major label and its affiliates, beginning with the foundation of Columbia Phonograph Company in 1887, to recent signings Post War Years and A$AP Rocky.

From Elvis, Bob Dylan and Lou Reed, to ABBA, Beyoncé and The Vaccines, the chart also references the development of music technology and formats – from cylinders to streaming – over the 125 year period.

Divided up by decade, 54 two-metre tall columns cover almost 150 square metres of wall space in Sony’s Derry Street offices in London.

More of Fowkes’ work is at alexfowkes.com – and this is what he carries some of it around in.

Design: Alex Fowkes. Media: Rob Antill. Printers: Lex Media. Commissioner: Emma Pike. Research: Paul Sexton.

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