Michel Bouvet

Michel Bouvet © Guillermo Perez

France | Born in 1955

“I’m fourteen years old. One day after school, I head to the café next door.
As I walk in, I hear Come Together, the song by the Beatles, coming from the jukebox
for the first time. John Lennon’s voice, Paul McCartney’s bass,
George Harrison’s guitar and Ringo Starr’s hi-hat captivate me immediately.
I hum and whisper the song to myself for months on end. A year later,
I become the drummer in a rock band…”

Michel Bouvet

“In 2017, I am fulfilling my lifelong dream of recounting 50 years of visual work related to music. For me, this coincides with a major celebration. In honour of the Beatles, we are marking the 50th anniversary of the release of the legendary album Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967.

There will be an exhibition entitled POP MUSIC. 1967–2017. Graphics and Music, which will be presented in Echirolles and Paris. There, 1,200 albums will be displayed and 200 covers commented on. The success is remarkable. And yet…

In the exhibition catalogue, I write: ‘As a unique musical, cultural and fashion phenomenon, the Beatles recorded some of the most beautiful songs in music history.’ Yes, but… For a long time now, the idea of telling the story of the Beatles’ songs through images has been playing on my mind. I have read the books dedicated to them and studied the lyrics of their songs. I have visited the Beatles Museum in Liverpool. However, commissions for posters, running a Parisian graphic design studio, my teaching duties and requests from abroad leave me absolutely no time for it.

When the Covid pandemic swept across the world and we were forced to stay at home due to lockdowns, that irresistible desire returned to devote myself to this project that is so dear to my heart: to illustrate 33 of the Beatles’ most beautiful songs in vinyl format. With passion and tenacity, I threw myself into this adventure. The hours worked are beyond counting. I read the lyrics over and over again. In them, I discover a poetry that lies somewhere between fairy tales and surrealism. I literally immerse myself in the world of the Beatles and try to translate it into my own vision.

I am obsessed with a project that turns my relationship with time on its head and reinvents it – I, who am used to commissions for posters for theatre, music, photography or museums. With posters, the concept is crucial. So is the relationship between text and image. With this project on the Beatles, it is quite different. Each image is a standalone visual creation and reminds me of a series of paintings I created whilst studying at the École des Beaux-Arts. They are the result of my imagination, fuelled by my passion for music, painting, literature and travel. And, of course, by the Beatles.”
Michel Bouvet