Ian Curtis (Linocut Print)

Ian Curtis
(15th July 1956 - 18th May 1980)

Ian Kevin Curtis was born in Lancashire on 15th July 1956. In 1976, he met his future bandmates at a Sex Pistols gig in Manchester. Songwriter and lead vocalist Curtis joined with guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris to form the post-punk band Joy Division.

Curtis was known for a bass-baritone voice in combination with his stark and unflinching lyrics, along with an unusual dance style. In 1979, Curtis was diagnosed with epilepsy and his unique and memorable dancing style has been said to be reminiscent of the epileptic seizures he experienced, sometimes even on stage.

Joy Division developed a sound that included the addition of the synthesizer—a complete contravention of the lo-fi punk era, but a decision that signalled the start of what would come to be known as New Wave. Their 1979 debut album “Unknown Pleasures”, shortly followed by the 1980 album “Closer”, and the single “Love Will Tear Us Apart” made Joy Division into cult heroes in the UK.

On 18th May 1980, immediately before Joy Division’s potentially career-changing US tour and shortly before the release of their second and final album, “Closer”, Ian Curtis hanged himself in his Macclesfield kitchen. It is thought that spiralling depression brought about by his worsening epilepsy and marital breakdown were responsible for his suicide. He was only 23.

"Love Will Tear Us Apart" was released the month following Curtis’ suicide and is the one for which Joy Division are most commonly known. The song went platinum in the UK, selling over 600,000 copies. In 2002, the NME named "Love Will Tear Us Apart" as the greatest single of all time, whilst in 2004 and 2011 Rolling Stone magazine hailed it as being one of the 500 best songs ever.

Two months after the untimely death of their lead singer and lyricist, the remaining members of Joy Division retired the band’s name and reformed under the new name New Order, continuing to make multiple hits throughout the 1980s.

ITEM SPECIFICS:

You are buying a hand-carved, hand-pressed, signed linocut print, limited to a run of only 30 editions for each of the four different colourways:

A) Black and white – for the purists;
B) Black on grey – because it most resembles the original record sleeve, plus I thought it would look cool alongside my Paul Heaton print!
C) Black on “Man City blue” – purportedly Curtis’ favourite colour according to the 2007 biographical movie, “Control”;
D) Black on red – because there’s a limited-edition single cover of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and other related imagery in this colour.

It is printed with water-based ink on Sunome Senaka, a fine 52gsm Japanese printmaking paper. The image itself measures approximately 150x205mm.

As with all handmade items, each one will vary slightly, making each print completely unique.