‘Eyes and Ears’ Exhibition Spotlights Music’s Overlooked Visual Creators
Paying tribute to the designers, photographers and creative directors who bring music’s visual identity to life.
Musicians may take center stage with chart-topping hits, but the visual artists shaping their album covers, tour posters and music videos often remain in the shadows. The Center for Contemporary Art & Culture at the Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon, is shining a light on these unsung creatives with Eyes and Ears: A Survey of Visuals in Music 2020-2024.
Curated by Bijan Berahimi, founder of the multidisciplinary studio FISK, the show presents an extensive collection of music ephemera—vinyl packaging, tour posters, merchandise, and a rotating selection of music videos co-curated by Noah Porter. Rather than a static display, the exhibition evolves over time, with Berahimi continually refreshing the selection to showcase a broad spectrum of music genres and visual aesthetics from the past four years.
The featured works span disciplines—graphic design, photography, creative direction, and film—highlighting the contributions of artists such as Bethany Vargas, Bráulio Amado, Clare Gillen, FISK, Imogene Strauss, Loris Russier, Noah Porter, PlayLab, Inc., rubberband and Zhamak Fullad, among others. Standout pieces include the hyper-feminine, Barbie-inspired visuals for Charli XCX’s brat summer and the gritty, biker-culture aesthetic of Don Toliver’s Hardstone Psycho.
“The visual work produced in the music industry over the last four years is among the best ever,” Berahimi notes. “But in today’s fast-moving media landscape, there’s rarely a space to appreciate these projects beyond a fleeting social media post. This exhibition allows visitors to experience them as they were meant to be seen—holding vinyl in hand, viewing posters at their intended scale, and immersing themselves in the artistry that defines a musician’s world.”
Eyes and Ears: A Survey of Visuals in Music 2020-2024 runs through April 3, 2025. Visit PNCA’s website for more details.
PNCA Campus
511 NW Broadway
Portland OR 97209
