External Box Design

Now that my typography and ornaments are totally completed I can concentrate on putting them together and creating a solid 'brand' for the brief. Below are the final designs for the external box (not to scale), featuring both the typography, the borders and everything else I've made so far.

Final Border Design (digitalised)

These are the finalised borders, text ornaments and small details of the external box. From being hand rendered in my sketchbook I then used the Marquee tool, the Polygonal Lasso tool and the Fill tool in Photoshop to finish them off properly and to the high standard I wanted. An advantage of having the big files digitally also means I can edit them when and how I please and if I want I can play with colour really easily.

Border Final Design (sketchbook)

Again drawing influence from the extensive research I've undertaken I was able to again draw my own Art Deco border. Some other influences include the Great Gatsby film, and the associated design and branding with that.

What inspired me most from these designs were definitely from the sharp, angular lines shooting across the canvas from all directions. However, the geometry is still very precise and disciplined and it can be seen how delicately the features were placed. The custom text is the main focal point of the image and stands out because of its rounded edges and silver texture, distinguishing it from the bronze-gold present in the rest of the work. The diagonal lines down from the logo help draw the eye down to the release date text and are an example of how good graphic design can control a viewers appreciation of the image.

The same style of intricate design is present in this poster too, although in a slightly muted way. The borders frame the characters beautifully and although in their own right they hold a place in the stars they don't steal any thunder from the cast. Again it can be seen that the diagonal lines present to draw the eye in certain places are there, this time directing you to the title of the film and the young woman resting on the credits.


(images credit to https://www.behance.net/Likeminded and all belong to their respective designers.)

Vinyl Cover Research (1)

So after some initial research into the depths of the internet, I found some exotic examples of creative vinyl packaging. This design was the first that caught my eye because of the impressive origami- yes, this 'sleeve' is composed of screen printed, origami folded paper.

At first glance it may not even seem like a vinyl cover. The paper is folded in a way representative of a birthing flower and reportedly was supposed to portray the feel and atmosphere of the music inside.

The paper cover gives a hand crafted feel, with attention to detail all over the octagonal origami. 

I like it because it's so different- how many mainstream artists go the extra mile to ensure their work is so totally different from anything else? I don't know but what I do know now is that it's entirely possible to make a feasible design from the simplest of materials. 

At this moment I'm unsure as to how this inspiration could come across in my work, but I'm toying with the idea of possibly using some type of printing in the packaging. Possibly it will only be for the title or some effects but who knows yet. 

(Images via http://www.creativebloq.com )

Initial Album Packaging and Merchandise Ideas

So, I've been looking at producing this edition of the album as a 12" vinyl, mainly because they are bigger which gives me more room to wiggle in in terms of design and packaging. However I also wanted to view this project as producing a limited-run of this particular design, and I thought a vinyl would be something more distinct than a typical CD, especially in that serious music collectors often have record players and, more to the point, record collections. I also think a really outstanding vinyl has way more 'Oomph!' than a titchy CD!

For this reason I wanted to design the packaging as something different, not just a record sleeve or something that opens out. I'm also considering making a prototype for this though, so it must be feasible in means of production and printing.

Merchandise is something almost every single music artist has as part of their package now, whether it be cool, grunge-rock t-shirts and tote bags to cutesy comfy pillows with Elton John's face on. Iggy already has a range of merch including t-shirts and totes (of course!), along with a cloth fan, temporary tattoos, patches and artsy nail stickers. Therefore I don't really want to do something similar to these, they've been done before and it would be easy to make the mistake of creating something identical.

Ideas I'm throwing around at the moment include her own actual fashion range, maybe some provocative bikinis or swimsuits (sex and erotica are often underlying in her lyrics although not something I want to focus on too much), instead of the cookie-cutter t-shirts and hoodies with a logo on that she promotes at the moment. A make-up range could appeal to her female fanbase, however some market research would be needed to be able to make a definite decision on this.

Common Themes within 'New Classic'

So, after doing a thorough analysis of the lyrics in the album, there were a multitude of themes I recognised throughout:

• Wealth
• Expense
• High-class
• Hard Work   ('hustle')
• Success
• 'Rags-to-Riches'
• Focus and Determination
• Non-Stop Drive
• Inner Pain
• Lone-Wolf attitude
• Aloftness
• Fashion and Style
• Exclusiveness
• Irreplacable
• Defiance and Rebellion

To find the basis for my theory, I'm going to deduct what I think are the most important themes relating to the album and the artist via mind-map form. By doing this I can even link topics together if there is a direct relation between the two, i.e. wealth and career, because being wealthy will be a result of a successful career, thus also linking it to the buzzword 'success'.

Song Analysis- 'Fuck Love'

Song Analysis- 'Lady Patra'

Song Analysis- 'Goddess'

Song Analysis- 'Impossible Is Nothing'

Song Analysis- 'Work'

Song Analysis- 'New Bitch'

Song Analysis- 'Fancy'

Song Analysis- 'Change Your Life'

Song Analysis- '100'

Song Analysis- 'Don't Need Y'all'

Song Analysis- 'Walk the Line'

Iggy or Kyary?

Now I need to decide which of the two albums I will be using for the project. For some style comparison, here's a music video from each of the albums:

Iggy Azalea- Work

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu- Family Party (きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ - ファミリーパーティー)

Comparing the lyrics of these songs in particular show a stark contrast. Iggy's lyrics are all written by herself about her climb to the top, starting from the bottom and following her own 'American Dream'. Kyary doesn't write her lyrics, Yasutaka Nakata both writes and produces her music, so in essence she is just a performer. In spite of this, the creative direction of her videos is interesting, as they're are different from the typical Western music video, while Iggy's are pretty average as far as rap music videos go.

'Work'-

'Walk a mile in these Louboutins
But they don't wear these s**ts where I'm from
I'm not hating, I'm just telling you
I'm tryna let you know what the f**k that I've been through'

'3 jobs took years to save
But I got a ticket on that plane
People got a lot to say
But don't know s**t bout where I was made
Or how many floors that I had to scrub
Just to make it past where I am from'

'No money, no family. 16 in the middle of Miami'


'Family Party'-

'You’re the type of person who’s always joking around
Who pretends to be unreliable
But does things when they need to get done. See, see? Isn’t that awesome?'

'Family Party
Party Party
Family Party
Party   Right now I’m feeling
Things that I can’t see
When I’m by myself, so I’ll protect them with you'


Looking at the lyrics side by side, it's easy to see different the concepts behind the particular songs are. Iggy uses quite strong language in her songs which shows she it serious about what she's writing and that she's proud but angsty. Kyary's lyrics are kind of immature and even totally childish, from the cutesy words repeated as a chorus and a lighthearted approach to the issues in the song (about the family needing protecting and her undertaking a father figure role almost).

Personally I'm more of a serious person and with Kyary's songs being so blasé and different from each to the next, I think it would be more difficult for me to conceive a really solid concept. Iggy's work (although not identical in each song) definitely has a handful of themes used constantly throughout the album, i.e. the importance of wealth and the hard work it takes to reach the top in the music industry. The presence of the typical 'American dream' aspiration is there too and already I can think of some concepts based on this take on her music...

So, the winner is Iggy!

A more serious and narrative concept is something I can work with better than randomised and catchy tunes, and I'm quite good at placing and linking symbols in my work that are related to a concept or theme. Next I will start doing some lyric analysis with songs from the album and drawing up some ideas from there.    

Assignment Brief

Today the first assignment of the second year was started.

The topic is concepts based on music albums from various artists, both mainstream and alternative, new and old.

We must produce an album or vinyl cover, some merchandise, a poster in two formats and a smaller editorial illustration. Concepts are a big theme in this brief and should be at the forefront of our work. Therefore I will be chosing the album that I not only like but can gather lots of ideas relating to the work that I can produce in a marketable way.

Possible choices:

Kraftwerk- Trans Europe Express- a German electronic music band.
Iggy Azalea- The New Classic- a female rap artist.
Mozart- The Marriage of Figaro- a classical music composer.
Kyary Pamyu Pamyu- Pika Pika Fantajin- kawaii/decora Japanese pop artist.
Jerry Lee Lewis- Great Balls of Fire- American rock'n'roll artist.

These are the albums that have stood out to me from the list, I think the lyrics have the potential to be very interesting and I like the sound of the musics. Mostly I started leaning towards Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Iggy Azalea; the music appealed to me more than the others because I like the bouncy beats and the highly-polished sound the albums have.