Masaki Koike Selected To Create Official Artwork For 53rd GRAMMY Awards

GRAMMY® Award winner and talented graphic designer Masaki Koike has been selected to create the official artwork for the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards®. The piece, which brings together traditional GRAMMY iconography with Koike's unique approach to entertainment design, will be used as the official artwork for the world's premier music event and will grace the cover of the 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards program book, telecast tickets and promotional poster, and will be the primary design element for the 2011 GRAMMY Nominees CD. The 53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held Feb. 13, 2011, at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live on the CBS Television Network at 8 p.m. (ET/PT).

"Our official GRAMMY Awards key art has long been a tremendous opportunity for The Academy to further engage and connect with the creative community, and another way for us to recognize how all creativity intersects," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy®. "From his album covers to his box set designs, Masaki's colorful and energetic work truly captures the spirit of music and its creators. We are proud to have such a talented artist of his caliber and passion involved in this year's GRAMMY celebrations."

Koike, focuses primarily on creating attention-grabbing design for myriad entertainment and corporate clients. A former art director at Rhino Entertainment, Koike won a GRAMMY in 2007 for Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package as the art director for his work on What It Is!: Funky Soul And Rare Grooves (1967-1977), and received two more nominations for his work on Black Sabbath's The Dio Years (2007) and Phish's The Clifford Ball (2009). In 2008 Koike founded Phyx Design, a multidisciplinary design shop in Pasadena, Calif. He has produced artwork for many musical projects including the CD cover art for The Very Best Of Mick Jagger (2007) and the package design for Willie Nelson's The Complete Atlantic Sessions box set (2006). Koike has also created artwork for artists as diverse as Cream, De La Soul, Led Zeppelin, Los Lobos, Maroon 5, Joni Mitchell, and Ol' Dirty Bastard.

Koike currently shares his creative insights with the next generation of graphic designers through part-time teaching and mentoring at UCLA Extension's Design Communication Arts department.

Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards - the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music - The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture. For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, join the organization's social networks as a Twitter follower at www.twitter.com/thegrammys, a Facebook fan at www.facebook.com/thegrammys, and a YouTube channel subscriber at www.youtube.com/thegrammys.

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