Why Joni Mitchell painted her own album covers: “My songs are very visual”
Ever since designer Alex Steinweiss pioneered the album cover in 1940, accompanying artwork has had the potential to make or break a record. Some artwork has gone on to become just as recognisable and influential as the music it accompanies, from Andy Warhol’s contribution to The Velvet Underground & Nico to the iconic Abbey Road zebra crossing. The most successful album covers are almost always faithful to the sound and artist they’re representing, a craft Joni Mitchell honed more masterfully than most.
From the iconic hazy blue photo of her which accompanied Blue to the smokey self-portrait that adorned the sleeve for Both Sides Now, Mitchell’s accompanying artwork has almost always featured some imagery of the artist herself. Those depictions of Mitchell are often painted, bringing a unique texture and artistic expression to her covers. This personal touch is only enhanced by the knowledge that Mitchell completes most of these paintings herself.
A true artist in every sense, many of her records are infused with both her sonic and visual artistry. This tradition began with her debut, Song to a Seagull, in 1968, which was accompanied by a psychedelic-inspired painting made up of warm, autumnal tones. From there, Mitchell moved into self-portraiture, though her style was never static.
Clouds was accompanied by a fairly realistic painting of Mitchell holding a bright red flower, while Turbulent Indigo saw her experiment with almost Van Gogh-style swirls and a painted golden frame. As Mitchell’s music style developed and changed, experimenting with jazz and electronic influences, so did her visual artistry. Each of her releases was elevated by the personal touch given to her album covers, a decision she made intentionally.
In fact, Mitchell once stated that she saw herself as a visual artist before she saw herself as a musician. “I am a painter who writes songs,” she stated, “My songs are very visual. The words create scenes…” They certainly do. Her proclivity for painting extends into her lyrical poetry, which often seeks to create worlds out of words.
Through the imagery of frozen rivers and swirling skates, accompanied by cold and cutting keys, Mitchell creates a picture of lonely festivities on ‘River’. Meanwhile, ‘Big Yellow Taxi’ creates a juxtapositional picture of paradise and pollution. Blue is a whole world within an album, wading through the murky waters of love and loss with soundscapes that really do feel blue. With such a visual quality to her songwriting, it’s fitting that Mitchell felt a desire to have control over the images that accompanied them.
This was particularly important to her as her career grew. By the 1970s, she was sketching on the move and found that it was even overriding her musical interests. Her love of painting shone through both in her artwork and in her songwriting, and together, they created one of the most coherent and artistically creative discographies in the history of music. Her desire to paint was instinctive; any other visual accompaniment for her output simply wouldn’t do.
