dead good

We judge books by their covers

Currently doing a live brief for the Penguin book adult prize. Whilst looking at existing book covers, I discovered Vintage Publishing, and an amazing art director - John Gall. I love his use of 2d materials to create a 3d looking cover, with depth and space. 

The man himself said: 

' A really great cover is going to convey the essence of the book in a unique and surprising way that maybe pushes the design envelope a bit. It might even add to and enhance the editorial content of the book.'

'I’ve always been kind of interested in flat 2D space vs. representational 3d space and how to create space using 2D elements as well as negating or poking holes in space within a  3d context. When designing a cover we’re basically reworking the same 5 x 8 or 6 x 9 space over and over, so I’m always trying to arrange elements into interesting juxtapositions and trying to find some breathing room. It’s very easy to clutter up the page.' 

I like

Found this from Grafik..  

A nice poster from Binary & the Brain (http://www.binaryandthebrain.com) designed in association with BirdLife International to raise awareness of the 52 UK birds on the endangered red list...

Nick Hornby Book Cover

I photographed a real heart for the cover of Nick Hornby's '31 Songs'. 
The book is about Nick Hornby's favourite songs, and how they have affected his life. Its semi-biographical in the way he goes through his life and the significance of the songs at the time. So, in essence, it is about life and music.

Profile painting

Did this a while ago. Its pretty big, on A1 paper. I enjoy working on illustrations on a large scale. I like the painterly style with thick use of acrylic paint, much like the impressionists used to do. It goes against everything my course tells me to do, no research, no purpose, no thumbnail sketches beforehand. Just did it because I felt like it, and I kind of miss that feeling.

R.I.P McQueen

Alexander McQueen made fashion design history when he featured the first ever 3d supermodel hologram at one of his shows. Truly a genius.

Chris Cunningham's ad for Gucci

Ever-inventive director Chris Cunningham blends calm with maelstrom in this new ad he directed, shot and produced for Gucci.

MINI BIO : Chris Cunningham made his directorial debut in 1997 with the music video for "Come to Daddy" by Aphex Twin, which was instantly praised, banned, and raved about by many people in the business. He followed up by making the music video for "Windowlicker" by Aphex Twin, and the astounding "All is Full of Love" video by Björk. Recently, he made his short-film debut, "Flex,". His incredible style alone makes him a director to watch out for in later years.

-http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0192260/bio