Extended Practice / Module Evaluation

Extended Practice has been an exigent and dynamic module that has given me an insight into my specialism through a variety of briefs. This allowed me to determine which briefs worked well and which did not, through analysis and evaluation. The briefs varied in scale, meaning I gained experience with working with shorter, fast paced projects, alongside projects which took 6 months. 

Diligent time planning  ensured the projects ran smoothly especially when some of them overlapped, although there were many things out of my control that resulted in me having to think on my feet and adapt; such as professional services not printing samples in time, or content not being sent by the client for long periods of time. This allowed me to gain knowledge in planning ahead and being prepared. This is a skill that can be taken forward for industry, as there will be times where I will be working on multiple projects in the future. 

The module demanded skills within problem solving, such as when things did not go to plan, for example within the Ceramics brief. Many prototypes broke, which resulted in me having to discuss new ideas on how to approach the next set to try and produce something successful. This also included problem solving within other editorial briefs, for example producing the publications and considering stock, binding and other treatments to ensure all error was avoided. Experience with this is helpful for after graduation, when things may go wrong or not work, and I must approach the brief in new and more effective ways to generate a successful resolution in the end. 

Research and contact/communication was another crucial aspect within Extended Practice. A lot of briefs needed primary research and contact from other sources, for example contacting sources for the research brief, conducting surveys and research to establish aims/goals/things to avoid and contacting potential collaborators. This was especially apparent within Brief 05, when I needed external collaboration in terms of producing content for the magazine, and Brief 09 when conducting research and testing the successfulness of the branding resolution. These skills can be taken forward after university, as communication and contact is always a beneficial skill to have within the creative industry. 

Throughout extended practice I feel I have attempted to produce resolutions that are as professional as possible, whether that be through professional printing services or ensuring effort and time was put into producing high quality design resolutions. As a result I have predominantly been proud of the projects I have completed for the module, and feel they have allowed me to explore editorial design to a greater depth, along with other design practices such as branding and identity, another area which I am interested in. 

The module has also allowed me to discover an aspiration in producing my own magazine, something I have been wanting to do in the future, and allowed me to put this into practice in it’s first stages. Demon Magazine has become a passionate project of mine that I hope can be explored further and developed again after university to hopefully become successful in the future. 

Overall I am proud of the effort put into Extended Practice and feel I have evolved as a designer, communicator and creative thinker, and will hopefully be able to translate these skills I have gained into the industry next year.

Penguin / Evaluation

This brief was a live project, submitted to the Penguin Random House Award. The brief involved designing a cover for the non-fiction classic, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. 

In terms of time management, I started this brief early on in the year, and due to Context of Practice ended up abandoning it for a while until that was over. In that time however, I gained a fresh perspective on the brief and spent an adequate amount of time researching and developing my outcome. In the end this could be improved on by starting and finishing the brief in a shorter amount of time, instead of letting the project collect dust. However, the resolution was submitted within plenty of time, and I felt it was highly appropriate to the genre. 

This brief allowed me to effectively use skills I had not visited in a while, for example hand rendered textures and elements. This was refreshing and allowed me to keep up with using different techniques I do not use as frequently within my practice now.

Retrospectively, in terms of the design, I was not fully happy with the final product, as I felt it was very obvious and did not push any fresh ideas, something I strive to do within my practice. Looking at the design, it is appropriate, but does not intrigue me. In hindsight I would produce a more abstract design, with a more interesting and obscure concept.

Penguin / Submission

Penguin / Final Spread

The Cover

The front cover utilises a chaotic hand rendered brush style in bright red to connote a realistic sense of murder and blood. This correlates with the genre of the book and provides a striking aspect which would engage an audience who was to see the design on a shelf. To keep the classic side of the novel prevalent, a serif font was utilised, maintaining a traditional undertone amongst the other contemporary treatments. Since the book details the murders in 1959, I chose to reflect this through this classic implementation. At the bottom of the cover is the scene of the crime, the Clutter Family's house where the murder took place. Since I had used a hand rendered element, this realistic image brings the composition to life, demonstrating the non-fiction side. The colour white has a stark contrast to the colours red and black, also relating to stains on clean furniture within the Clutter's house. Amongst this are the two black nooses, black connoting a sense of dread and darkness, whilst the nooses refer to the execution of Eugene Hickock and Perry Edward Smith, the killers. One noose being larger than the other gives depth and perspective to the design.

The Back

The back contains the same hand rendered treatment to the front however in black. Black again conveys darkness and death. It provides a background that the blurb can easily be read on, also allowing the details of the Penguin template to stand out, whilst remaining consistent to the rest of the composition. The text is tilted slightly to communicate a sense of disarray and also discomfort, again aligning with the nature of the book, where multiple family members are killed and their house ransacked.


The Spine

The spine is kept simple, as to not distract from the focal points on the cover, keeping in line with the black back design and using the same typeface for consistency. The white still stands out well against the rich black background, providing an easily read spine.

Penguin / Developments

This first template highlighted the concept of creating the shape of a noose & also a droplet of blood relating back to the nature of the novel and the book title. Needs refining to create impact in next developments and also more experimentation with a higher quality noose. 

The next set of developments show a more realistic noose, creating a sense of realism to highlight the non-fiction genre and the reality of the murders/execution. Dark themes set the mood for the rest of the novel. Colour choices include the obvious red and a blue, communicating the term 'cold blood'. Two nooses for two criminals. Experimentation with a contemporary font, provides legibility and a modern tone. Again, these are not dynamic enough. Using the treated ambiguous image of the path to the Clutter family's home adds concept and depth, especially placing the image inside the noose as a perfect analogy to 'doing the crime and now doing the time', the killers 'see' the location where they killed those people. 

After experimentation, hand rendered elements were introduced to add chaos and a personal touch. The nature of the brush stroke relates to blood stains and streaks, and also adds a background for the nooses. Outlined looked empty and unrealistic whereas filled in nooses look more striking and impactful, as the brief asks for. Keeping the colour palette to three colours also maintains an uncluttered and overbearing composition, whilst the tilted text, brush strokes and nooses implement a sense of darkness and dread.

After feedback, it was suggested that the edges of the brush were the weakest part of the design, so adding an image that relates to the case was conceptual and adds another element to the composition. The image is the Clutter family house. The nooses dangling above this image help to convey foreshadowing. This final spread will be refined and tightened up before submitting to the competition. 

Penguin / Initial Idea Sketches

Rough experimentation with texture (img 1) to replicate tire tracks. Creates impact with bold black colour and texture, represents the murderers driving away from the scene, and the tire tracks which can be found on the pathway leading to the clutter's house.

img 2 is experimentation with weapons, using knives and hand rendered type in a deep red. These would need refinement but communicate some of the ideas on the mindmap previously created for the brief.

Penguin / Non-Fiction / Idea Generation

After researching the case, I started to just brainstorm different objects and themes associated with the story, which could be used on the cover design. It must be very iconic and relevant to the book, and be able to leave an impression as a classic.

I also need to consider the audience. The judges are looking for a design which attracts a new generation of readers. This must be taken into account as if it looks out of date, it may not appeal to the younger audience; but it should also still look timeless.

Penguin / Non-Fiction / The Clutter Family Murders

To begin this brief I felt I should have some knowledge of the book's content. When I was younger I watched a film adaptation 'Capote', however my memory is hazy and films do not always represent the novel.

The Clutter Family Murders

Two prisoners by the names of Richard Eugene Hickock and Perry Edward Smith were told by a fellow inmate who worked for the Clutter family that they were wealthy. Upon their release from prison Hickock and Smith planned to perform a robbery on the family home.

"They went to the Clutter home outside of Holcomb, Kansas when four of the six family members happened to be home. Once entering the home, they realized that there was not a safe which contained money, they awoke Herb Clutter. Mr. Clutter gave them the little cash he had and said there was no more. They aroused the remainder of the family and again searched the house, confirmed Clutter’s story for themselves. They ransacked the entire house getting no more than roughly fifty dollars, a pair of binoculars and a transistor radio. Once the two had all they could find and assuming that Herb Clutter wasn't volunteering the information of where the cash was stored, executed in cold blood all four family members.

When officers arrived, Herb Clutter, 48, lay sprawled on a mattress in the basement, stabbed, his throat slashed and a shotgun charge fired to his head. He wore pajamas. His hands were bound and his mouth was taped shut. On a couch in an adjoining room was 14-year old Kenyon Neal Clutter, bound, gagged and shot in the head. In separate upstairs bedrooms were the bodies of Mrs. Bonnie Mae Clutter, 45, and Nancy Mae Clutter, 15. Mrs. Clutter was bound and gagged, Nancy only bound. Each had been shot in the head."

Details of the murder are important in establishing what will be on the cover. The cover must represent that it is a crime non-fiction book, without being overkill. A level of sophistication and subtlety will be what I am aiming for this project. There must be a sense of discomfort, without pushing it too far.

I began to look into images related to the case that could be used.

Herb, Bonnie, Kenyon and Nancy Clutter.

Entrance to the Clutter residence, the Basement and Bedrooms where the bodies were found. 

All of these images due to the time period they were captured and the lack of quality technology, have an old finish to them, encapsulating the mood for the book. It looks eerie, uncomfortable and unsettling. 

Penguin / Existing Covers

Some existing covers for In Cold Blood, to gain perspective on what has already been done, and to gather ideas. 

Realistic footage of the place where the murders happened, where the Clutter family lived. 

Use of blood splatters as the letterforms O. Quite abstract, bright coloured and grabs attention. Red is an important colour for crime/murder related novels, should this be explored or avoided? 

Strong, large serif type. Has a classic feel, representing the time period of the murder. Impactful type grabs attention on a shelf and ensures readability from afar. Retro colour palette.

Use of the murderers harsh feature - the eyes. Eyes are very emotive, so this captures the intensity of the novel successfully. Dark colours communicate the sinister tones, and capitalisation also heightens this, with a sense of volume, taking up most of the space. 

Through research it is clear that there is running themes with previously designed covers, it will be up to myself whether to take an abstract route like last year, or design something more obvious yet still conceptual. 

Penguin Design Award / Brief

Adult Non-Fiction Cover Award

We are looking for a cover design which breaks boundaries in the same way that the book did. It should be bold, maybe even shocking, yet remain true to the book, reflecting both its literary merit and its chilling content.

Your cover design needs to include all the cover copy supplied and be designed to the specified design template – B format, 198mm high x 129mm wide, spine width 20mm, incorporating all the PENGUIN branding and all additional elements such as the bar code.

What the judges are looking for

We are looking for a striking cover design that is well executed, has an imaginative concept and clearly places the book for its market. While all elements of the jacket need to work together as a cohesive whole, remember that the front cover must be effective on its own and be eye-catching within a crowded bookshop setting. It also needs to be able to work onscreen for digital retailers such as Amazon.

The winning design will need to:
have an imaginative concept and original interpretation of the brief
appeal to a contemporary readership
show a good understanding of the marketplace
have a point of difference from the many other book covers it is competing against

Copyright must be cleared for all images used in your cover design and you must include a credit line on the back cover of your design for any third party images used. For example: ‘Cover photograph by Joe Bloggs’.

Brief Analysis

I have chosen to submit for the non-fiction cover award this year, as I enjoy working with publication covers, and due to my interest in crime/serial killers, I know this will be enjoyable and complies with my interests and level of comprehension/research I will naturally do into the book/crime case. I learned last year that it is a challenge to rework a classic novel, and would like to attempt this again as an evolving designer. 

Concept is key for this brief, and will lead the direction of the design I will produce. It is important to experiment and enjoy the process but also remember that this is a competition and consider what the judges are looking for. 

Extended Practice / Statement of Intent

During the course of Extended Practice I plan to produce a variety of work, manly focusing on editorial and brand identity in order to explore the prospect of these areas being my specialisms for after university.

I will create a time plan to be as organised as possible, making it easier to complete projects by planning ahead. 

During Extended Practice I aim to create my own magazine as part of a brief, through research into potential niches and gaps in the market, and see if this can take route after the module is over. 

I plan to increase my confidence and skills within communication and contacting individuals for research and connections.