Graphic Design: Tip top record sleeve design from German duo Schultzschultz

I read a good Tweet from MagCulture recently bemoaning how often you hear/read the “They say print is dead but…” way of introducing interesting and exciting print projects. The same could be said of the commonplace discussion of record sleeve artwork in the context of the post-iPod vinyl revival. So let’s skirt round that well-trodden cultural turf and content ourselves with celebrating a German studio which seems to have utterly mastered the art.

Marc Schütz and Ole Schulte founded Frankfurt-based agency Schultzschultz in 2007 and their impressive portfolio includes books, posters, identities and the like. But it’s their work for the music industry that really caught my eye, thanks to the unbelievable amount of top-quality record sleeves they have produced.

They say the studio is focussed on “authenticity, materiality and quality of craftsmanship” and that certainly shines through, as does the strength of the pair’s ideas which are explained in illuminating contextual write-offs on the site. And people said the iPod would kill off… yadda yadda yadda.