Setting the Stage
process reflection 1
Table of Contents 4. Research 6. Discovery 15. Refinement 19. Criticism 20. Revision
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Research
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Researching for Beloved came with a long weekend of rereading the book. I had read it before as a student of American literature and now I needed to read it as a designer. I took notes on the themes of the book that would lend themselves towards visual representation, taking note of the things that could become symbols. I took some time to look at artists that I thought spoke to the themes of the book. I focused on two in particular, Rashid Johnson, for his self-portrait that resembled a branded back when leaned against a wall. As well as Kara Walker whose work seems delicate at first galnd until closer investigation reveals its disturibing natures.
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Discovery
Beloved is a fable in which the readers are taught that past is always present. The main character Sethe is reminded of the dehmanizing nature of slavery through the everpresent tree of scar tissue on her back as well as the return of the daughter she murdered. While Sethe believes that Beloved reutn is invitation for her to forget, Beloved is trying to bridge her to the side of the dead, everepresenting th ghost of damages done by the horrific memory of slavery.
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Beloved Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison
Initial Sketches
When it came to creating the initial sketches for Beloved, the first thing I tried to convey was the cyclical nature of the book as well as guesturing to the motifs in the book.
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I thought about how color (specifically red), sunlight, trees, blood, the number 3, and water, all played a part in the book. I wanted to capture its violent nature as well as the elegance of Toni Morrison’s writing and use of language. I thought about the contrast between the delicate and dark nature of flesh, and scar tissue, blood and water, hope and horror, and life and death.
Beloved Toni Morrison
Adorn Engraved
Beloved Toni Morrison
Adorn Serif
Beloved Toni Morrison
Brim Narrow
Beloved Toni Morrison
Optima bold
Beloved Toni Morrison
Bembo bold
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Stick-Figure Sketches 10
Beloved Toni Morrison
Adorn Engraved
Beloved Toni Morrison
Adorn Serif
Beloved Toni Morrison
Brim Narrow
Beloved Toni Morrison
Optima bold
Beloved Toni Morrison
Bembo bold
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Photograph Sketches
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Refinement
As I was refining I started to see how I could combine some of the ideas in one composition. The light of the sunflowers, the hope, coming out of the scar tissue—the tree. The shaking of a reflection in water on the scanner and the red of blood on the letters. I thought about how I could use high contrast images to capture all these concepts at once and still make it legible as type on the stage. I played around with the letters, the background, and using a camera vs. a scanner. 15
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Criticism
Beloved This is not a story to be passed on.
Toni Morrison is an
Morrison was born in Lorain, Ohio in 1931. Since her educations at Howard University and Cornell University she has become a prominant novelist, essayist, editor, teacher, and professor emeritus at Princeton University. Her awards and honors include the Presidential Medal of Freedom, National Humanities Medal, Nobel Prize in Literature, Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Toni Morrison
award winning author of New York Times Bestellers: The Bluest Eye, Song of Soloman, and Beloved.
Beloved is a tale in which past is always present. Sethe is reminded of the dehmanizing nature of slavery through the everpresent tree of scar tissue on her back as well as the return of the daughter she murdered in order to protect her from a life at the Sweet Home plantation.
Toni Morrison
While Sethe believes that Beloved has returned as an invitation for her to forget the horrors of Sweet Home. All the while, Beloved is trying to bridge her to the side of the dead. and representation of the ghost of the undoable damages of the memory of slavery.
The final version of my book cover was a result of playing with clarity and consistancy of the forms. I thought about scale: zooming out of the tree on the jacket and zooming in on the back. I changed the letters so they were higher contrast and the back so it was scanned and shaky like the front. I think if I were to make changes on this cover I would simplify the concept slightly and increase the visual interest on the inside folds as wellas the spine. 19
Revision
I felt as though I could still make a stronger impact with scale shifts and front to back read of the cover. I decided to revise and tackle the contrast. I used a stronger black background. Over that I used the brighter flowers and light, shinier paper text ontop. I varied the scale shifts with the turn of the book by use of the smaller cover images and the larger back image. I also paid attention to lighting and photography.
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Megan Stansbury Setting the Stage Typography II Sam Fox School Fall 2018
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