ALICE IN CHAINS
A CASE STUDY
PROJECT OVERVIEW
We have partnered with Alice In Chains for over 14 years, providing creative direction and design for their most recent studio albums as well as overseeing the repackaging of their classic catalog into 30th anniversary deluxe box sets. These archival projects require an intensive and detail-driven approach, involving the excavation of unreleased imagery, the reconstruction of original assets from decades-old scans, and collaboration with various artists and stakeholders to thoughtfully reimagine elements of the original releases. The result is a series of meticulously crafted, high-quality collector’s editions that honor the legacy of the band’s most iconic work.
Project Credits
- (Art Direction / Design) Ryan Clark
THE DEVIL PUT DINOSAURS HERE
The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here marked our first collaboration with Alice In Chains, making it an especially exciting project for us. The packaging features a transparent red outer sleeve that reveals and obscures key elements within the artwork—most notably transforming the triceratops skull on the cover into a hidden devil silhouette when the package is opened. This layered, interactive approach set the tone for what would become a long and rewarding creative partnership with the band.
JERRY CANTRELL
In addition to our ongoing work with Alice In Chains, we’ve had the distinct honor of designing album packaging for the band’s own Jerry Cantrell. We've created the artwork for Brighten, I Want Blood, and gave our spin on a special edition repress of Degradation Trip—each one a true labor of love. Every release presents a unique opportunity to collaborate with an artist we deeply admire, and we take that responsibility to heart. Most recently, we partnered with our longtime friend and talented photographer Darren Craig to craft the striking, cinematic visuals for I Want Blood, leaning into stark, monochromatic photography and bold type.
DIRT TURNS 30
For the 30th anniversary box set of Dirt, we partnered with Alice In Chains to create an immersive, tactile tribute to one of rock’s most iconic albums. The box lid is filled with loose metal shavings—reminiscent of vintage Wooly Willy toys from the 1950s—which can be manipulated using a custom-cast metal figurine of the girl from the original album cover. The figurine doubles as a turntable accessory, designed to sit atop the spinning vinyl, and includes a magnet in the back of the head to interact with the metal shavings on the lid. The set also features an 80-page hardcover book, art prints, vintage show poster reprints, a mock setlist and tour laminate, an 8x10 glossy photo, the full album on both CD and vinyl, and its five hit singles pressed on individual, multi-color 7-inch records—each with custom screen printing on the B-side.
It’s rare to find designers that can lock in with an artist’s vision so distinctly and seamlessly like Invisible Creature can. After a decade plus of working together on various projects, I know that we’re always in good hands when it comes to packaging and branding. They will remain one of our go-to's indefinitely.
Mark Wakefield
Velvet Hammer Management
FACELIFT GETS A FACELIFT
Facelift was our first of the commemorative box sets for Alice In Chains. We reimagined the album’s iconic color palette by layering a series of one-color transparencies beneath a clear box lid—creating a vibrant, dimensional rendition of the original cover image. Inside, the 2-LP vinyl edition features records printed as picture discs, each side showcasing a unique zoetrope animation that comes to life as it spins on a turntable. The vinyl jacket itself is printed on metallic stock to enhance the vivid, high-impact aesthetic. The set also includes an 80-page hardcover book, foldout poster, art prints, a vinyl slipmat, a tour laminate, and a cassette version of the album, rounding out a bold and immersive celebration of this landmark release.
Jar of Flies Box Set
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of Jar of Flies, we created a deluxe box set that reimagines and elevates the iconic release. We transformed the original cover photo into a 3-dimensional piece by reconstructing the previously unseen side of the boy’s face, and printing the image as a lenticular print to add depth. To complete the scene, we created a custom jar—embossed with the band’s logo, filled with realistic fake flies, and topped with a touch-sensitive red LED light under the lid. The box also includes a 60-page hardcover book featuring rare and unreleased photos from longtime band photographer Rocky Schenck, a foldout poster, and the album pressed on striking tri-color vinyl.
RAINIER FOG
For Rainier Fog, our second album collaboration with Alice In Chains, we leaned into a layered, collage-driven aesthetic built from vintage Pacific Northwest photography—an homage to the album’s regional title. The physical packaging features die cuts throughout, adding tactile depth and allowing imagery to shift and reveal as the viewer explores each panel. The keenest of observers may notice the subtle representation of “AIC” in the cover imagery itself: the mountain’s triangular peak forms the “A,” a die-cut eye serves as the “I,” and the sea at the base of the mountain is of course the “C”—a quiet visual nod to the band’s initials woven into the landscape.
THANK YOU
Jerry Cantrell, Sean Kinney, Mark Wakefield, Animaan Pathak and Richard Warwick