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in and remarkable freedom.”
The very first poster that he designed for Factory with
its “Use hearing protection” strapline, along with the
architect Ben Kelly’s design for the Hacienda (which
Saville collaborated on), foreshadowed the industrial
warehouse chic that would come to dominate interior
design in the following couple of decades. (After noticing
recently that the originals were fetching £1,500 on
eBay, Saville decided to produce 500 re-editions of the
FAC1 poster which will cost £100 each. But how much
this is motivated by the horror that it’s out of the reach
of the masses, and how much by what must be a fairly
easy income generator, is hard to say.)
With Blue Monday and the earlier New Order album
Power, Corruption & Lies there was an interest
in coding the work, so that the titles were spelt out in
colour. He pushed this idea further with later albums.
With New Order’s Brotherhood (1986) and Technique
(1989), it was clear whose work it was from the enigmatic,
restrained and visually innovative sleeve design,
respectively a sheet of Titaanzink metal and a Warholian
cherub. One of the persistent legends that attaches
to Saville, is that, like the author Douglas Adams, he
loves the sound of deadlines whooshing past. Stephen
Morris, the drummer of New Order, confirms this,
recalling Saville’s most infamous late delivery. “It was
the programme he did for us on an American tour that
turned up on the last gig, and we’ve still got 1,000s
BUY Peter Saville books online from and
rotting away in a warehouse somewhere that we can’t
get rid of.”
But Brett Anderson, the lead singer of Suede,
forgives Saville’s tardiness. Anderson is a friend of
Saville’s and worked with him very closely on their
albums Coming Up and Head Music. “A lot of it was
done sitting and chatting and drinking coffee. It’s a real
exchange and a discussion. It’s all part of his charm.
What you miss with deadline efficiency is made up for
by the incredible level of personal care he takes in the
work. He really immersed himself in the music. He’s
not driven by money or fame, just a genuine quest for
aesthetic beauty.” Saville is currently working with the
photographer Wolfgang Tillmans on Suede’s greatest
hits cover, due for release in September.
Because of his concerns to get a job done right, Peter
Saville and business have long had an uneasy relationship.
“There’s no notion in any industry that they will
wait for graphic design. They will not wait. They’ll
spend longer negotiating your work-for-hire contract
than giving you to do the job!” he says with rising incredulity.
“It’s just the finishing, but it’s in the finishing
that you make it or break it.”
Does he think that his deadlines are unrealistic? “They
are if you want something resolved or of any quality,”
he says. “My problem comes when it’s my work. I
become territorial, and self-indulgent and maybe arrogant.
If it takes till next Friday, it’s gonna take till next
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