iFONTMAKER TYPEFACE

This my font, created using iFontmaker, through iPad. I wanted to go with a Russian-like typeface, inspired by the Russian alphabet. When using this, I did find it a bit difficult to get used to the controls, but being allowed to change the size and shapes of the brushes allowed some freedom. It also shows more creativity, as opposed to downloading a font from the internet.

COLOUR PSYCHOLOGY

"Colours, like features follow the changes of the emotions"- Pablo Picasso

Colour psychology is the study of colour as a factor in human behaviour. I wanted to research this as I think its important to use the appropriate colours when producing my final outcome of book jackets, so that the colours will help to emphasise the themes within the books.

Colours have more abilities than just making a product aesthetically pleasing, they have the power to affect moods, feelings and emotions. They can also raise metabolism, raise blood pressure and even cause physiological reactions.

In the section below, I will describe some the pros and cons of some of the colours that I plan to use in my final outcomes:

• RED: Red is generally a powerful colour. It can raise the pulse rate and gives the impression that time is passing faster than it actually is. It also represents warmth, excitement and masculinity, but on the flip side, it can be aggressive and demanding. 
• BLACK: Black can represent sophistication, substance and glamour and works really well with white. Since it is the absence of light, it can be quite menacing as many people are afraid of the dark.  Black is a dense colour and creates the perception of heaviness.
• BLUE: Blue is said to be the most popular colour in the world. Unlike red, it is soothing and the colour of the mind. However, it can also represent coldness' lack of emotion and unfriendliness.
• GREY: Grey is a suppressive colour. While it represents psychological neutrality it can also symbolise lack of confidence, depression and lack of energy.

DIGITAL EXPERIMENTS: digital screen print

These are my digital experiments using screen printing, inspired by Chris Parks's illustration work. This involved using a source image, which was my digital collage made earlier, creating a new layer, and drawing over the collage. Just as Parks did, I created new layers for each colour, for which I could add and change different colours, without affecting the others. I also made sure to change the brushes, using different sizes and shapes for different areas of the image. I did like creating these, because you are allowed to change your decision, if you didn't like the colours used. Despite this, it did take me awhile to complete it (3 hours approx and that was just for the outline). 

To improve this, I could use more primary images, and with regards to the background, I could create a repeated pattern to make the design a lot more occupied like Chris Parks's works.

CHRIS PARKS aka Pale Horse

"I’ve always just wanted to make a living doing something I enjoyed and not hate getting up every morning. Fortunately, I found my passion for art and design early in life and have been doing my best to master it ever since."

Images from the Pale Horse website

These are some of the works by designer/illustrator Chris Parks, aka Pale Horse who runs a illustrating company also called Pale Horse in Tampa Bay, Florida. Parks has produced works for a range of companies, including WWE, DC Comics and Mini Cooper I will analyse his work for inspiration for my final book jacket outcomes as I will want to use his techniques in Photoshop.

According to the official Pale Horse site, Parks's fascination stems from "mythology and ancient civilisations" as well as being influenced by "heavy metal, pro wrestling, tattoos and psychedelics", most (if not all) his work consisting of portraits. In an interview, when asked about his inspirations, he stated that his best ideas "usually come from when I'm not trying too hard to come up with them", as well as doing some research and some digital layout sketches. 

Parks seems to mostly use digital means to complete his work, usually by Illustrator and Photoshop via a graphics tablet. After looking at his work closely, it seems that he uses the Brush tool from Photoshop, but in different shapes and sizes for texture. His designs are very elaborate, paying close attention to details minor and major. When filling his designs with colour, he uses different layers, naming them after each colour, so that he can separately change them when he wants to, without affecting the other colours. At times, his use of colour is limited, but his attention to detail makes up for it. The scale of his work varies, for instance the first illustration is A4 size (297x210mm), whereas the second pieces are the sizes of two skateboards since they were drawn on to skateboards. Although he does include some typography in his work, as seen in the example above, his main priority is obviously at the artwork itself.

 I really like his close attention to  detail, and his different brush shapes to convey the different textures. Upon first seeing his work, I was amazed at the different shades and marks made from the brushes. 

To some extent, his work does remind me of elaborate patterns seen in some fairytale books from my childhood. When producing my final outcomes of book jackets, I would try to aim for as much detail, especially paying attention in the line art, where the brush sizes and shapes differ.

DIGITAL EXPERIMENTS: digital collages

These are digital experiments using digital collage on photoshop. Inspired by illustrator and collage artist Ciara Phelan who uses different images in her collages. The experiment involved using images either of my own or I had drawn, or from the internet, and arranging them they way I wanted to. I feel that the first one is better because I applied more thought into the composition, much more than I did with the second version. However, the second version used extracts of drawing, my own images as well as something made in Photoshop, so I used mixed resources.

The first version is for the Orwell book 'A clergyman's daughter, whereas the second was for '1984', hence the multitude of eyes.

Overall, I think this is effective for conveying the inner spirit of the book as it gives you the chance to use images relevant to that book, which is what the brief for this project required.

DIGITAL EXPERIMENTS: type experiment

This is my digital experiment using type, which was completed in Photoshop. This involved getting an image and a rough texture from the internet, desaturating them and then typing the title of the book only once. I duplicated the title by holding the 'ALT' button and dragging the title out to where I wanted it. This is quite a good experiment, especially for 1984's dystopian novel. Also, the red text obviously sticks out to symbolise the protagonist's individual thinking.

DIGITAL EXPERIMENTS: interweaving photo strips

These are experiments using interweaving photo strips, done on Photoshop. This involved using a cropped image, duplicating the background layer twice, one for horizontal strips, the other for vertical strips and selecting the areas of the image where I wanted the strip effect. However, before hand, I made the image black and white as I thought it would suit the theme for '1984'. As for the second version, the same process was used, but I added a gradient, which I think suits the book quite well. In general, this experiment was a bit difficult, because if a step of the tutorial was missed, it affects the outcome. I had to keep going back a step to see what it was that I was missing out, but it turned out well in the end. To develop it, I could add some overlaying text, which would emphasise the themes in '1984', and make it seem more sinister.