Scarfe on The Wall - Pink Floyd box set selling fast
Written by Matt   
Tuesday, 30 September 2008

Scarfe On The Wall complete setMany of you will recall our previous news stories relating to the stunning limited edition hand-signed and numbered box set commemorating Pink Floyd's The Wall project. Scarfe On The Wall is a highly desirable collaboration between the artist Gerald Scarfe, Roger Waters, and the luxury book publisher Gloria, and we hear it is selling fast (helped by its very limited nature).

We've got some more info for you on the set, of which there are just 300 copies, including some insights from Gerald Scarfe himself...

The set comprises a "monograph" book (signed by Roger Waters) which can only be bought as part of this box set, and eight limited edition prints - five pieces of artwork used at the time, along with three prints that have never been seen before, inspired by Comfortably Numb, the judge and the band onstage at Earls Court. All of the prints, 16"x20" giclée prints on thick matt art paper, are numbered and signed by Gerald Scarfe.

The book contains an in-depth interview with Gerald Scarfe about his creative journey and involvement with Pink Floyd in the concert performances and film of "The Wall". Together with this interview, the 38 page book contains his preparatory sketches and artwork for the album and animation, offering a fascinating insight into the talents behind one of the most iconic concept albums of all time.

The book also contains conversations with the artist famed for bringing Pink Floyd's vision to life. When questioned about his inspiration for the project, Gerald reminisces, "One day Roger told me he was writing this piece. He said, 'I think we should do it together.' So, he came here to my house and played me the tapes, which turned out to be The Wall. Roger explained that the concept was really about alienation and how all of us in life have things that can hurt us; some things more than others – your mother, your father, your girlfriend, your boyfriend, your teacher: all of them know how to belittle you and hit you in the spot where it really hurts.

"They know your weak points and how to get through your wall. Roger's symbolic way of putting this across was to say that we all build a wall around our vulnerable side, and as a consequence we then become walled up ourselves and are unable to show, or respond, to emotion because we've cut ourselves off. We're trying to protect ourselves so much that we become desensitised."

But the project was not without its difficulties: "Roger had this thought that somehow Pink [the album's main character], should look like “Punch” of Punch and Judy fame. So I made lots of drawings – Punch within the wall, Punch on top of the wall, Punch turning into worms. There were a lot of worms involved, lots of decay and rot. Then Roger came to me one day, rather awkwardly, and said 'I've been thinking about this Punch and Judy thing and I don't think it's a good idea really.' I had this stack of drawings already done..."

The box set is priced at £1195 for a limited time only, and is available to be pre-ordered at www.scarfeonthewall.com. The small print run means these books are guaranteed to quickly become collectors' items, and with many of them now sold, you'd best act soon to secure your copy. To place an order or to raise any queries, please email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .