Berlin label PAN share some stunning artwork

Founded in Berlin in 2008 by sound artist Bill Kouligas, PAN has released records by experimental artists as diverse as Heatsick, John Wiese & Eli Keszler over its four year lifespan. Its beautiful artwork is a critical part of its success, and, for Bill and his partner Kathryn Politis, a critical part of the business, conceived as a visual project as much as a musical one. Read his statement below, and open the gallery underneath.

We are both involved in art and design in different capacities. We’re into a lot of different stuff. What we do is the result of a whole range of images sounds etc. that filter in, through some way or another. These things inevitably change over time, and have certainly changed since we began working together almost 4 years ago.

We work together on the majority of the label art. Together we established the basic design and packaging of the records which remains constant throughout each release; the records come in a pvc sleeve which features a form of silk-screened typography and design. The record sleeve itself for the most part consists of found images from our ever-expanding collection.

The design of the label has a cohesive aesthetic that the musicians/artists we work with are aware of. There is no fixed process in regards to working with them on the artwork, we strive to make something within the concept of their album as far as possible, and we both approve the final artwork. Some artists are more involved than others; some may suggest images they want to use, or drawings of theirs they would like translated into the pvc design. With others we discuss influences that they would like to see incorporated into the design on a more abstract level. In any case, with each release, comes an exchange of ideas. The label was conceived initially as a platform for our artwork and interests. We are trying to not limit ourselves to being a record label in the traditional sense; there have been numerous shows, events, showcases and festivals etc. to date as part of the label, and there are some non-music related projects in the works.

For more information, events, releases and PAN store, visit pan-act.com