Week 13: Cover
Went back into capstone mode this week to tackle the cover of my cookbook. This is probably the part of my project that has gone through the most exploration and iteration. Let’s take a look back.
First semester
I finished off the summer semester by exploring possible visual systems for the book through cover studies. What it really became is a time to play and make. Some of the ideas that sprouted in these explorations helped develop the final book this semester.
Second Semester
This spring semester I honed in on what visual elements I wanted to use within the book. I used the cover once again to begin exploring two different visual directions. The final style took elements of both directions.
Ultimately the cover I went with is a cleaner, typographic approach. Since the photography throughout the book didn’t feature hands and because I felt that the hand-made feel came through in the rendered type, I chose to not use a hand on the book cover. It felt like using the image of the hand I had would have been a departure from what I’d been creating. Instead, I chose to highlight the typeface that I felt reflected the Amharic letter forms used in Ethiopia. I chose a bright red as the primary color with a creamy yellow as a secondary. I knew I wanted to use one of the colors from the chapters on the cover and I felt like the red stood out more.
