ok so i seem to have lost the files for what i *was* going to post; so I'll Post this instead...
this is work from last term; Book jacket design; I chose to do Haruki Murakami's The Wind Up Bird Chronicle
I chose to do the Cover in Japanese foramt, the text is directly translated, so i know it probably doesnt make sence, but this was an exercise in design and layout more than anthing, so i'm not so bothered
the front Cover:
the actual image...
(
larger copy here)
with the cover i wanted to illustrate some of the main factors withing the novel; the wind up bird itsself is always hidden; never seen so as an analouge for this i used the statue in the abondoned house's garden; another is the main character (Toru Okada)'s affinity with going down the well in said abandoned house's garden... i tried to bring the two images together. the fact the grass line makes a cross ist intended and not supposed to be symbolic of anything...
hope that makes the image a lil more clear...
we also had to produce two inside Illustrations, but as teh novel is split into three 'books' i did three:
I chose to use the cat, Noboru Wataya (later renamed Marcrel) to illustrate the different sections of the book; the first with the cat leaving, symbolising Toru's fall into the obscure, the second with the cat walking, symbolising Toru's search and the Last, with the cat returning, symbolising the conclusion to the many stories and threads within the book.
hope ya like 'em
if anyones read the book - please do comment to tell me what you think of my interpretation
oh yea; the Cover illustration was done entirely in photoshop over about 5 days; the cat illustrations in pen and ink on cratridge paper; about 30mins to each pic
the cat walking away is my fave ^^