NEW AMERICA 2042 COVER

This project started off as a request for two illustrations from a client, and resulted in the design of an entire book cover. After a number of updates and changes, the book cover was successfully completed.

PROCESS

The client first requested that his sketch (of a robot and a coin) be created as a vector illustration. 

I designed the robot based on his sketch, and added an additional element (glowing red center). 

However, the client explained the robot he had conceptualized; and rather than the red center, he wanted some kind of circular eye. So I made those changes for him.

He then requested that the robot be made darker in color, while maintaining the different gradients.

And eventually he requested that the robot had some more depth to it, so I did what I could with adding shadows and highlights, using gaussian blur on each element.

On to the coin - I came up with a selection of designs based on the original sketch, only varying in the colors used in certain elements, and in the font and type treatment. 

The client informed me of his choice, and I gave him two options in the treatment of the font. One version included font with a gradient in order to give it some depth (left) and the other had font in one, flat color (right).

He preferred the one that gave the font some depth, and further requested that the stacked bars in the center be similar in color as the rings in the background. Additionally, he requested that the coin look more old and worn out. This was the final version of the coin:

Soon enough, the client was willing to allow me to design the book cover, for which these illustrations were designed. He provided the measurements and other requirements for printing the book. He requested that the map of the US be incorporated into the cover somehow, but apart from that, he gave me creative freedom to develop the design. So I started a design for him and simply gave him a chance to provide feedback. (The final changes in the robot illustration were requested during the book cover design process, so the following screenshot was an initial version.)

The client had a simple request to change the font of the titles, but he was happy with the colors (of the fonts) and the broken up style that resembled the coin. (This is when the robot was updated and replaced.)

After an update on the blurb for the back cover, I changed the layout/design a bit by moving the coin to the bottom and including plenty of negative space around it. 

The client wasn't so sure about the red color within the map of the US, so I experimented with a couple of different colors for him. I started with a yellowish gold color to match the title and coin, until he requested some treatment of blue and/or green, as those were more in line with some of the concepts in the book.

The client favored the final color choice, and when asked to choose between a black background a blue-black gradient, he chose the blue version after giving it much thought. I added a grain to the background to give it a sense of texture. 

There were a few last minute changes, such as the title of the book. The client shared that there had been a book with the same name on Amazon, so he made a minor tweak to the title. Another designer (unknown) was able to update the robot to the client's preference, creating harsher edges and giving it different levels of depth.

The coin was shifted to the left - as the barcode would have been obscuring the design - and it was doubled (stacked) so that it wouldn't look so awkward with the one coin on the left by itself.

​

This is the final version of the book cover design: