PROJECT OVERVIEW
As part of the Penguin Book Cover Design Award, I redesigned the cover for Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novel Daisy Jones And The Six.
Daisy Jones and The Six is the story of the rise and fall of a rock’n’roll band during the 70s. The novel, told exclusively in interviews, follows the band from their start in the LA music scene to becoming a worldwide sensation while uncovering what went on behind the scenes, and what led to their unexpected and sudden split at the height of their success.
The brief called for a “nod to the heady haze of the 70s music scene whilst at the same time making it clear to the reader that it is very entertaining, aspirational and something that exists within the world of Popular Culture.”
project type: competition
programs used: Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign
Fully embracing the 70s aesthetic, the cover design plays with the tensions present in the story: between the public knowledge and the private scandals, between the height of fame and the retrospective decades later.
Wallpaper – old, faded, burnt – serves as the backdrop. It offers a sense of home, of privacy, while alluding to the stories told within those walls. On top sits a poster for the final show Daisy Jones and The Six played. Bright pink accents give the otherwise heavily textured and retro design a modern touch.
challenges
This was an exiting exercise in creating a heavily textured design within Illustrator and Photoshop alone. Wanting to challenge myself by relying on my own assets, I created my own textures and poster mock-ups to use within the design.
Finding a design that is clear, while also conveying the feeling I carried away from the book, without letting myself be influenced by the existing covers, was a great process that forced me to clearly articulate my own expectations prior to getting started.
Talking to people not familiar with the book was a helpful feedback-loop, allowing me to check in on who they thought the target audience of my design would be, what the story was about, and any other expectations they might have from the cover.
