Selected contributions
Art Director, Monterey Pop Festival
Wilkes was art director for the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967. Monterey was the first widely promoted rock festival in the world, and subject of an acclaimed documentary movie entitled Monterey Pop by D. A. Pennebaker.
Wilkes designed all the print material for the festival, including the 80-page program book.
Art Director, 1971 The Concert for Bangla Desh
Album package, photography and design for George Harrison and Friends' Concert for Bangladesh album (1971) was provided by Tom Wilkes and Barry Feinstein for Camouflage Productions. Wilkes also provided design and photography for the subsequent Apple Films movie release. In 2005, he contributed to the documentary The Concert for Bangladesh Revisited with George Harrison and Friends, as part of the DVD release for the concert film.
For the album's front cover, Wilkes used a confronting image showing a naked child beside an empty food bowl,[2] in an effort to bring home to record-buyers the plight of the refugees of the Bangladesh Liberation War.[3] In his book on the Beatles' Apple Records releases, author Bruce Spizer describes the cover as "haunting".[2] Spizer writes: "In selecting the photo, Wilkes wanted a picture that would generate sympathy without being overly horrific ... Wilkes's design is a simple but highly effective logo that drives home the point of what motivated the concert."[2] According to Jonathan Taplin, who served as production manager at the Concert for Bangladesh, Apple distributor Capitol Records were concerned that the image was not commercial enough, but Harrison was resolute that Wilkes's cover should be used.[4]
In 2004, Wilkes discussed this cover image, and his involvement in Harrison's aid project, with journalist Matt Hurwitz of Goldmine magazine:[5]
- Hurwitz: "So on to The Concert for Bangla Desh (1971), which is a beautiful cover, certainly one of your top pieces. Where did the cover photo of the child come from?"
- Wilkes: "This is an AP or UPI released picture of a starving child... I did extensive airbrushing and then did this design, this presentation of it. I kind of cleaned it up a little. I spent hours looking at horrible, horrible footage, and we eventually selected this shot. Some of the other photos in the book are from the rest of the film footage I reviewed. It was difficult to watch. We just took stills from the film."
- Hurwitz: [Wilkes displays a 1-inch high pewter medallion of the boy on this front cover, framed in the arched outline.] "Where did this come from?"
- Wilkes: "We did Bangla Desh gratis for them. We did it just because we wanted to contribute to George's cause, so we just worked on expenses. He flew us to New York [for the two concerts at Madison Square Garden]. We did all the photography, on the stage, and we put the whole package together. George gave these, as a little present, to everybody who donated their time. I also have a really nice letter from UNICEF thanking me, which was really great."
1973 Grammy Winner for Tommy album package
Wilkes along with his partner, Craig Braun, was awarded [Grammy Awards ] by NARAS in 1973 as art director for the 1972 Ode Records' version of Tommy as performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and English Chamber Choir with Guest Soloists.
