what's with the cover art for Manic Street Preachers' 1994 album "The Holy Bible"?

Question

the cover art of a painting picture of three fat ladies in underwears and the album is called the Holy Bible.

is it because they hated and were ridiculing certain Ned Flanders-like Christian that are against rock music?

Answer 1

No, it was an existing painting.

The album cover is a painting called Strategy (South Face/Front Face/North Face) by artist Jenny Saville.

Although the band were originally quoted £30,000 to use the painting by the Saatchi gallery, Saville gave her permission for use of her work for free after a 30-minute telephone call with Richey James Edwards in which he described, in detail, each song on the album. Underneath the painting is the tracklisting and above it is the band name and album title, all in the same typeface as Simple Minds' Empires and Dance album. The back cover features a photo of the band in military uniforms and a quote taken from Octave Mirbeau's book The Torture Garden.

Of the album title, Edwards said "In every hotel in the world, the only constant is the Holy Bible".

See:

http://home.germany.net/100-496653/manics/tme/saville.htm

It has to be said that this is not the only 'fat person' work of art she's done:

http://artboobs.blogspot.com/2007/05/closed-contact-by-jenny-saville.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenny_Saville

Answer 2

i'm a wide manics fan!! The holy bible isn't my known album finished by using them. I favor technology Terrorists, Gold adverse to the soul and it truly is my reality tell me yours. i could price it 7/10 My known music off the holy bible is information of discomfort