Mintaka Records – SOMA SOMA – Saudade – Record Sleeve Design 2019

This is Owen Gent's album art for Mintaka Records' *Saudade*, likely created sometime in the 21st century. It presents a stark landscape featuring two figures separated by a chasm, bathed in the warm hues of a setting sun. The figure on the left is disintegrating into smoke. The title "Saudade," a Portuguese word, evokes a feeling of longing, melancholy, or nostalgia, and Gent's illustration perfectly captures this sentiment. We can consider the social function of album art in the digital era, and how it seeks to create a visual and emotional experience for listeners. The visual codes here are powerful. The figures suggest isolation and loss, amplified by the desolate landscape. The disintegrating figure may symbolize the ephemeral nature of memory or the pain of separation. To understand Gent’s work fully, we might consider the traditions of Romantic landscape painting, or contemporary trends in digital art and design. By examining these contexts, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the ways in which art reflects and shapes our understanding of human emotions.