Out of the entirety of Ed Fairburn’s 12-year career, his work for Mind Games: The Ultimate Collection strikes him as some of his most triumphant.
A comprehensive re-release of John Lennon’s 1973 album, the new Mind Games collection offers listeners a host of immersive experiences, encompassing six different CD mixes, a hardback book, a reproduction of the original 1973 triptych marketing poster, and postcards, among other memorabilia. Also found within are Fairburn’s portraits of Lennon and Yoko Ono.
For years, Fairburn has combined crosshatched human portraits with sprawling maps, achieving detailed compositions that superimpose facial features upon a city’s distinct topography. His artwork for Mind Games is no different.
Fittingly, Fairburn superimposed his portrait of Lennon upon a 46-inch map of Liverpool, the city in which the musical legend was born. With Fairburn’s patient hand, Liverpool’s winding streets transform into Lennon’s face, elegantly playing with light and shadow to deepen its realism. The map also contains 550 individually numbered locations highlighted in ultra-violet ink, all of which correspond to a historical story in an accompanying booklet.
Fairburn opted for a map of Tokyo when creating his Yoko Ono portrait, with the city’s complex web of streets and waterways cutting through Ono’s face. The map similarly compiles stories from 167 locations in a dedicated booklet, directly connecting the multidisciplinary artist with the city in which she was born.
Both maps enhance the artistry behind Mind Games: The Ultimate Collection, solidifying the new boxset as a “time capsule into John and Yoko’s world.” In fact, its ingenious design recently received a 2025 Grammy nomination for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Packaging.
“As I write this, I can see my own edition of the box set—18kg and the size of a small television—in my studio, still waiting to be explored,” Fairburn wrote in an Instagram post about the project. “Looking back on the last 12 years—my career as an artist—this project really stands out for me.”
The deluxe boxset for Mind Games was released on January 28, 2025, and is currently retailing for $167.98. Fairburn’s posters, however, can be purchased separately via the John Lennon Store.
To discover more of his incredible portraits, visit Ed Fairburn’s website and follow him on Instagram.
For the re-release of John Lennon’s Mind Games: The Ultimate Collection, the artist Ed Fairburn created stunning portraits of Lennon and Yoko Ono superimposed upon vintage maps of Liverpool and Tokyo, respectively.
The portraits include accompanying booklets compiling stories of individual locations featured on the map, directly connecting both artists to their respective cities.
The comprehensive re-release of Mind Games features a host of immersive memorabilia, and recently received a 2025 Grammy nomination for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Packaging.
Ed Fairburn: Website | Instagram
All images via the John Lennon Store.
Source: Ed Fairburn Instagram
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