52nd Montreux Jazz Festival Unveils Poster

Contemporary artist Christian Marclay has created the poster for the 52nd edition of the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival. For the first time on a festival poster, the cyanotype process has been used, a printing process which produces a cyan-blue print. Marclay is a Swiss artist, performer, and composer. He works in a multitude of media including sound, album covers, vinyl records, magnetic tapes, and film excerpts.

In a press release for the introduction of the poster, the Festival organization states that the poster “…communicates principally through contrasts and tensions. While the cassettes evoke a certain return to analog media, their fracture also refers to the evolution in how music is listened to. Reflecting an era of both streaming and vinyl, the pixelated font blurs the line between analog and digital.” And Christian Marclay himself adds: “This renewed interest in analog is fascinating. We need to have something in our hands. We miss album covers, and also exchanging physical mixtapes. Music is above all else a social event. That’s why we go to concerts: to be present, for a unique experience.”

This year’s festival will run from June 29th to July 14th and the programme will be announced on April 17th.