Studio Brief 1 - To Kill a Mockingbird - Refinement

Creating the whole book cover

From the crit it was said that the typography looked unbalanced, so within the grid the title was all aligned to the right with the authors name also aligning in the same way creating a greater sense of structure. The back cover uses same typefaces as the front to create consistency. Using Berthold Akzidenz - Grotesk for the quote highlights this the most. This is important because it defines the key metaphor within the story. Franklin Gothic Book, it was found in research, can be used at different point sizes because of its spacing making it the best out of the three typefaces chosen initially to be used for the blurb. 

The circular design has been rotated so that the 'A' logo can be seen, because it was previously black on a black background. This has also allowed the title on the spine to contrast the authors name because the two parts are on different elements meaning they needed to be the opposite colours to stand out. Aligning the barcode with the rest of the text on the back cover creates a better form. The top of the quote also aligns with the second part of the title on the front cover creating consistency. Moving Harper Lee to beneath the title makes the typography look less erratic and instead follows the same alignment as the title. Alignment to the left also makes the typography easier to look at as this is how we read words naturally.

The imagery for this design follows along the same idea of protection as the previous designs however Tom is positioned within Atticus. This however creates too much of a contrast and makes Toms circle stand out far more. The title typeface uses only Berthold Akzidenz - Grotesk in reference to the film which is centralised with the authors name aligned to its right to create a strong frame between the two elements. Trebuchet MS was changed at the bottom of the back cover to Franklin Gothic because Trebuchet MS was not used anywhere else on the cover. This means that the typography has been reduced to only two typefaces. The white circle is central to the spine meaning more of the circle is on the back cover creating a sense it is creeping up or imposing on the black. This has meant that the typography needed to be wrapped around the shape in order to fit it in.

Making 'To Kill' in the tile larger than 'a Mockingbird' creates a dominance over 'a Mockingbird' and emphasises 'To Kill' suggesting the danger.

Enlarging 'To Kill' and reducing its opacity creates a sense of threat to 'A Mockingbird' whilst also suggesting the threat is lurking in the shadows, much like the lynchmob in the story.

Final Design for Crit 

The recommendation at the the bottom of the back cover has been set in italics to create distinction between it and the blurb which are in the same typeface. 'To Kill' uses Berthold Akzidenz -  Grotesk in reference to the film which dominates the typeface below (Franklin Gothic Book) creating a sense of oppression. Harper Lee is set in Franklin Gothic Book to reflect Lee's association with Scout and her boisterous nature, but its thin form also implies her reclusivity, making the type look more withdrawn.