The next assignment will be to design and illustrate a book jacket. This will be a chance to integrate display type and image. Be sure to choose a book you know well, so you know what it is you are trying to communicate to the public about the text.
At the very minimum, design the front cover. By default, use the standard hardcover size: 6.375 x 9.5″. If you make your jacket another size, model it on an existing book so your design will have the appearance of the Real Deal. If your professional goal is to work in children’s publishing on picture books, you can do a children’s book jacket, just use that industry’s standards for your size and design. At the very minimum, design and illustrate the front cover. For extra Brownie Points, you can do the spine (1.25-1.75″ would be a good size) and the “back ad” as it’s called. If you want to really impress, you can design the flaps as well.
For class this week, April 3rd, have sketches and work in progress. You may use any media to create your illustration. Use either Adobe Illustrator or InDesign to set your type, unless you have special effects that can only be done in Photoshop. As ever, for final crit on April 10, you’ll hand in your artwork and sketches and archive the digital files, as well as a pdf, to your Dropbox folder. Your art work must read well from a bit of a distance, so manage contrast for legibility. Print out proofs as you work, so you can see how it’s looking. Make necessary adjustments for the clarity of the print.
While working on this, study existing book jackets. What makes a book look compelling? How is the story or subject suggested in an enticing way? How does the typography interact with the illustration? What is in the backad (back cover)? Note in the sidebar on this blog there are links to great book jacket design sites. Have fun exploring them.
Book jacket by The Book Designers
ILL 300 Spring 2015 