the final sketchbook design tweaked after pitch

this is my final sketchbook design - ive tweaked the male figure so the gun is  apart of the knight added in where the blurb would go in a vague approximation of the ocr std font i plan on using. i have also neatened up the big sleep font, added a red blood drop to the queen and used the correct dimensions on the spine in order to establish how much i can fit on there. the only thing that i plan on changing when i begin using illustrator is the female form whose other arm needs to be more visible in order to fully convey the concept of the figure. now that ive tweaked the design and have how it will look on paper i'm very excited about translating it into illustrator which should be fairly simple since my design revolves around fill shapes and silhouettes.

The Pitch

i began my pitch by briefly displaying some of my initial research to give a vague idea of how i approached the project.

 

since i instantly researched silhouettes and knew that i wanted to include them in my design i showed some of the more effective ones i found ( they were all book covers which also gave me an idea of how effective silhouettes can look on an actual cover). i then looked into Matisse's work whose cut out playful jagged style was what i wanted to emulate.

when considering fonts i knew that i needed to look for two- one for the title and another for the blurb and possibly authors name. for the main title i wanted to create something that matched the cut out silhouette style- i liked the font on the modern and current cover of the big sleep but i wanted something a little edgier and jagged. i did look briefly into some previously existing fonts that referenced the art deco period but i found them all to clean and neat and not in keeping at all with my design because of this i want to make my own font for the big sleep ( ive drawn it out roughly in the right). for the blurb i knew that the font had to be legible but had to look good at a smaller size whilst remaining in keeping with the rest of my design. since i wanted to really emphasise the detective genre i plan on using a typewriter font which i think will elucidate the time period and the genre, i did like one of the typewritten ones found on dafont ( second up from the bottom) but im swaying more to the standard OCR A STD font because it looks good at a smaller size.

i had two designs that i really liked - this was my least favourite out of the two but i thought i would show it anyway just incase my peers liked certain aspects that i could incorporate in my other design. it was decided by general concensus that this design was too complicated and didnt initially attract the eye although they did like the positioning of the authors name in the bullets tragectory.

this was my second design and the one that i felt was more effective- again a film noir colour scheme ( i wanted to keep the colours relatively simple in order to make the design bolder). this got much better feedback, my peers liked the textural silhouettes which added interest to the dark fill chess pieces they also preferred its simplicity which was more eyecatching and made the design seem bolder. it was suggested that i needed to move the gun of the spine since i wasnt clear why it was seperated from the rest of the figure which i agreed with and that the spine should simply be the title and authors name rather than the extra details incorporated at the edges. with a little tweaking this is going to be my final design ( i plan on creating the book cover in illustrator since its got a very hand drawn feel to it which i can generate through the use of a graphics tablet, and a lot of solid shapes that will be easier to create in illustrator rather than photoshop.

 

Charle Huston Book covers

these are modern book covers which i felt really embodied the film noir genre ( it was interesting to investigate modern interpretations of film noir) i really like the broken sections of the 'dead' which conincides with the background black silhouettes which contrasts against the red  figures which help to break up the mass of black. i also really like how the figures have shadows which make the floor more interesting. there is also a sense of a gradient at the edges of the block of white which draws the eye inwards diagonally to the top of the frame ( to the clock). in this cover the positioning of the text introduces a directionality, its size filling most of the bottom the vibrant red framed by the solid black.

 

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC044wHS9HqLSIfvrpy5_2mtvVTULghNrMOtSCPrbrqtEMVACaOFbgL0-IqdVKnuuxNRUZhLLfYGa76wScGHYEiMY43JPIVqikQfd6x7xeoekslPlq0T-8_3dnLdiRtPcLQL_z7OT3c48/s1600/My+Dead+Body+UK.jpg

 

  this is one of my favourite covers- i really like the style - its a little jagged like Matisses work but its more realistic and reminds me a lot of the casino royale bond cover researched in the very beginning of the project. for something thats in actuality pretty grim the yellow and red colour scheme introduce a fun cartoony quality. although the figure is supposed to be laying down ( the outline of a body on the floor which is conveyed by the furniture on the edge of the cover) it does almost look like the silhouette is standing upright. perspective is inroduced as the head looks to be smalled than the legs which diagonally draws the eye downwards to the text which has been placed on the body. the bright yellow colour ensures that the silhouette is the focal point which in turn places focus on the text.

http://tucsoncitizen.com/morgue/files/2009/02/l110419-1.jpg

 

 

this cover again manipulates a film noir colour scheme which is something that i plan to use. again the text has been placed at the bottom of the design which makes directs the eye to the figure and then up to the author name. the red font contrasts against the monochrome backdrop and i think that theres a sinister quality which hasnt been evident in the two covers above. and there is more of an order generated through the straight lines which break up the white skyline. the bloody style of the font instantly conveys  a horror/thriller genre and there is a sense of balance indicated by the two sets of text- the obvious larger red title has been mirrored by the smaller authors name. the smaller size of the name conicides with the overall perspetive of the bridge ( and the vanishing point which is dominated by the red character).

http://www.lovevampires.com/images/halfbrooklyn.jpg

 

 

silhouette poster - paul colin

i really like the red colour of these silhouettes and the angularity of the characters, there is a clear sense of contrast created through the red on blue. whilst a gradiented black forces the eye from the text upwards. playfulness is generated  by the tilt of the text and the white outline. and i particularily like the repeat of the white shape above the camera. the main font itself is a little boring to me- it suits its purpose and its very legible but i find it a bit dull in comparasion to the almost comical figures in the piece.

http://tentangdesaingrafis.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/gaya-dalam-desian-art-deco.html

 

Rene Margritte art deco posters

i wanted to research some of the art that would have been around when the big sleep was written so i began looking into the deco period ( which ran from the 20s till the 40s). i thought that this might help to clarify my design style. the simple lines in the Magritte piece above generate an elegance which can be related to the femme fatale characters of the big sleep. its a very simple design which i guess is congruent with the period and incredibly feminie which is evidenced by the pink background, white flowers and female figure.

the poster above is my favourite out of all of the Magritte's researched, the elongated pose of the woman suggests elegance whilst the background shapes interlock and curve  introducing a directionality. its a lot buisier than the poster above which makes it more playful and fun. the cartoony style could easily be translated into silhouette. shape is incredibly important as it generates a background frame and i like how the colour of the text changes with each backdrop colour which ensures clarity but it also matches how the shapes in the background change.

again this is a really simple design the elogation of the characters a recurring theme which initiates a sense of elegance, this poster is a little more subdued probably because the background is very calm, the solid cream softens the image whilst the yellow curves match the yellows evident on the characters. the deco style font is something to consider when designing since it would have been around during the big sleep but it depends on the style of my own design- i want to make mine modern and bold.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2012/05/14/rene-magritte-sheet-music-covers/

im not actually sure is this is a Magritte poster ( it had no clear artist label) but nevertheless i really like th segmentation of colour in this piece through the blue and yellow and then via the white and black ( i really love how the arm is emphasised by this colour change). there is a delicacy to this piece which makes me think its a lino print the white lines is particular help to fill the blue section and direct the eye downwards. the pose of the woman and the diagonal position of the shoulders draw the eye up to the title. the font made exceptionally playful by the tilts and fat stokes. the solid fill of the character is reminicient of silhouettes which i plan on manipulating in my own design.

http://www.kunsthal.nl/data/pictures/e_334.jpg

Matisse cut out silhouettes

http://www.livingneighborhoods.org/pics/fifteen/matissebluenude.jpg

After looking at silhouettes on book covers i decided to look at matisse's cutout collages which contain the simplified shapes i'd like to manipulate in my own design.There is a certain amount of playfulness to his artwork which is elucidated by the random proportions used to generate the figures.
The piece above is very elongated which directs the eye upwards and i really like how outline has been generated by the segmentation of the shapes which elucidates the importance of the white. the curve of the leg is exceptionally disproportionate to the rest of the portrait but it directs the eye round this curve is somewhat mirrored by the arm giving the piece a sense of balance.

http://easybynature.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/icarus-matisse.jpg

'Icarus'- this piece is one of my favourites mostly because i love the primary colours used, the rich blue of the background really contrasts with the golden spiky shapes (possibly supposed to be feathers). again all of the figures appendages are disproportionate which integrates a playful element. i like the roughness to the silhouette which i think it makes the shape more interesting. i plan on using paper to create some of my designs in order to generate a similar effect.  

http://www.thecityreview.com/s02simp1q.gif

the red shape on the chest instantly reminds me of blood splatter which incorporates a real sense of movement and drama. i really like the left hand image, the curve of the back almost contains the figure within a circular shape which is broken by the line of the outer leg. this figure retains a lot of its proportionality in comparison to the right hand one. the separation of letters makes it harder to read the text but the cutout hand drawn style of font correlates with the rest of the piece. i much prefer the blue background in the piece above to this mint green which isn't a bold enough shade to match the boldness of the silhouettes.

Femme Fatale Rene Gruau

i knew that i wanted to focus my idea on the femme fatale aspect evident within the novel and i really liked the two female characters that fell strongly within this genre: Vivian and Carmen. because of this i plan to focus on a scene within the book which defines these dangerous, seductive and enticing qualities. before i can begin drawing however i wanted to look up some other representations of what could be considered a femme fatal. Rene Gruau's elegant painted ladies fall directly into this category.

In the painting above it is the portrayal of elegance which most interests me, there is a lot of emphasis placed on line which directs the eye down the frame to the rough edges of the skirt as it fades aways. its strangely fragile which is particularly reminiscent of Carmen's fragile mental state (which is in actuality the cause of all the trouble within the novel). the use of the bold black outline elucidates the soft curves of the figure and makes the character look more dramatic. in my own design i want to incorporate this elegance but i want to also make sure that the gritty genre of the 1930s detective novel is also portrayed which may be achieved through the use of silhouettes or a similar thick outline.


http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG8079901/Rene-Gruau-a-new-look-at-the-influential-Dior-illustrator.html

This painting reminds me a lot of Vivian's character and the scene when she is playing roulette: 

"she wore a low cut dress of dull green velvet [...] the crowd closed and hid all but her head [...] i looked at Vivian's face it was taunt, pale, beautiful and wild. her lips were red and harsh".

i think that out of all of the female characters Vivian is by far the most elegant ( possibly because she has the ruthlessness associated with the Sternwoods). i love the lines apparent in the painting above, the smooth curve of the dress  once again draws the eye downwards, the manipulation of the red and black colour scheme generates contrast. red as a colour has connotations of seduction and blood which of course directly embodies the themes within the Big Sleep. the softer smoother textures in the painting simultaneously adds depth and helps to soften the rigid lines of the doorway, an aspect that i shall definitely take into consideration when creating my own design.

http://archdezart.com/2011/12/10/fashion-illustrations-rene-gruau/

This is the Rene Gruau piece that i think most embodies the femme fatal aspect, the red lipstick, the earring, the cigarette and even the shape of the hat as it cuts across the face are all qualities that embody the femme fatal character:

"her black hair was glossy under the robin hood hat"
"she puffed silently with her cigarette and considered me with steady black eyes"
"she was wearing a pair of long jade earrings and nothing else"
"her lips were red and harsh"

i love the how a silhouette has been manipulated to create the face, the white on black instigates drama, the incorporation of the red lips references the film noir genre, whilst the smoke tendril and the matching earring introduce a sense of balance within the print. its very simple but this simplicity retains the elegance of the previous pieces already researched.

http://www.renegruau.com/wp-content/gallery/kiss/cigarette.gif

this is one of my favourites mostly because i really liked the movement of the hair and the rough textural edges, the tendrils remind me a lot of Carmens wild "tawny" hair which is one of her defining characteristics  repeated throughout the book". the peach terracotta colour of the background introduces a warmth which would not have been created if Gruau had used his normal white black red combination.
the flower was another aspect of this piece that drew my attention, in terms of the big sleep i could use a similar face and replace the random flower with an orchid ( another consistent theme). there is a softness to this simple portrait an aspect that i should play around with when designing.



http://www.wornthrough.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Diorling-René-Gruau-1963-Private-Collection-©-SARL-René-Gruau