The purpose of this thesis is to theorize the evolution of the graphics of vinyl covers, from their birth to the time of digitization in our days. The history written up to now is still very limited in comparison to the vastness of the products elaborated from the 1940s up to now; a story still too concentrated on the American scenario and reluctant to look out over the rest of the world. This thesis will focus on enhancing the graphic products of Made in Italy, with an in-depth study about the Campania region.
The first chapter will introduce the birth of vinyl as an object through the experiments of Edison and Bell. Following the birth of the album covers attributed to Alex Steinweiss and a comparison between the theory of packaging techniques by Filiberto Menna and the text The silent salesman by Pilditch.
The second chapter aims to explain how, thanks to the covers, vinyl has become a collector's item, adding value to its function; the object becomes a "fetish", recalling the theories of Dorfless and La Rocca.
The third chapter focuses on the history of Italian cover graphics, with an analysis of the Italian trans-avant-garde, youth languages and dedicated exhibitions.
In the fourth chapter, the cover becomes manifesto through the analysis of the mass italian avant-garde, the relationship between graphics and politics and the birth of the Posse.
The last chapter focuses on the digital graphics of streaming music, analyzing its evolution. For the conclusion, the interviews with Donato Zoppo, Mario Maysse and Isidoro Acquaviva were transcribed.
