The Clash - London Calling - Original Sketch by Ray Lowry

The Clash - London Calling - Giclée Print of Original Album Design Sketch by Ray Lowry.

Edition of 70.

Outer dimension - 23" x 23" | Art Dimension - 16.5 x  16.5"  | Giclée print | Hahnemühle German Etching | 310gsm | 

Framed option comes in wooden frame with anti-glare acrylic glass.

Ray Lowry was an English cartoonist, illustrator and satirist, with a highly distinctive style. He contributed to The Guardian, Private Eye, Punch, Tatler and NME, among many other publications.

With the rise of the underground press in the 1960s, his work found a home in publications like Oz and International Times. This exposure led to a lasting collaboration with the New Musical Express (NME), where he contributed a weekly cartoon strip titled “Only Rock’n’Roll.”

His passion for raw rock and roll aligned perfectly with the emerging punk scene of the late 1970s. After seeing the Sex Pistols on their Anarchy tour at the Electric Circus in Manchester, he met The Clash. This encounter led to an invitation to join them on their 1979 U.S. tour as the official tour artist. Armed with sketchbooks, pens, and paint, he captured impressions of the tour in real-time.

Later that year, he designed the iconic sleeve for The Clash's third album, London Calling. He chose Pennie Smith’s photograph of Paul Simonon smashing his bass at New York’s Palladium Theatre on September 21, 1979. The moment he saw the photograph, he knew it was perfect; reminding him of the iconic image of Elvis Presley on his debut album. He felt both images perfectly encapsulated the essence of rock 'n' roll. When sketching his vision for the album cover, he incorporated vivid green and pink lettering as an homage to that Elvis Presley LP.

Numbered and stamped by the Ray Lowry estate.