Digipack CD Design

[Alex Traska]

Hey guys/girls..

I'm currently designing the jackets for a series of four CDs for a house record label based in the US. I've just finished the first of four and thought I'd throw it up!

You'll have to use your imagination slightly on this one. The gold areas on the preview look a bit whack on preview, but they're going to be printed in metallic gold as a spot colour and hence will look much nicer. Also, this preview shows the inside and tray areas of the jacket at the top (folded over during manufacture). Due to the low-res preview and the nature of a computer monitor, the white text on the pink is a little difficult to read, but was found to be absolutely fine once proofs had been printed.

http://www.myhouse-yourhouse.net/flyers/other/swank_pink_one_prev.jpg

For the next three versions I'll be using a different gold animal each time and changing the vector design slightly for each. :)

Hope you like.

All comments appreciated.

[Adamosity]

I like it;) Great style and well refined. The client must be wrapped!

Adam

[distruktor]

i like it too... the gold ink will look sweet

[xplod_ldg]

Wow. Very good design. Like it very much.

[cornfed]

It's beautiful!

[reuber1]

I was going to say something about the white on pink, but it seems that if they look awesome in print as you say I'd say this is pretty sweet. Good work.

[CamarotaDesign]

another fine design, Alex. I'm having trouble figuring out what is going to be the gold spot color? is it the "1" with the circle around it and part of the tiger? or ?

Also, I wonder if a gold foil stamp might look pretty sweet with a similar design?

cheers!

EDIT: Ah, nevermind. I re-read your post, it is the animal and the circled 1.

[Jriddim]

very nice very nice.... If this is what they were looking for then its wonderfull.. Personally I am starting to really frown apon this style...ONLY because I see it EVERYWHERE.... the grungy splatters...the pink and brown colors... the whisping curvy stuff.. dont get me wrong it looks great!...If you were the first to pull off this style then kudos to you... but if you created this just because it looks cool... then i dunno...

please dont take this negativly at all

[Alex Traska]

thanks for all the comments.

The clients is absolutely ecstatic with it. They originally send me (from the US to the UK, lol) a cushion cover and a womens vest/tshirt and said "we want the pink on the cushion cover matched, and the brown of the vest"...so out came the pantone colour booklet. They were quite clear about what style they were looking for as well. I agree...this style IS everywhere...it's very trendy right now. But then again it's not necessarily meant to be a ground-breaking piece of design..it's meant to appeal to a certain market.

[Jriddim]

with that said.... Awesome Job Alex!

I wish I could see the final printed peice with the metallic gold!

[mac.FINN]

Nice. Ditto what's been said already.

Why is there no texture on Panel 3 while there is on all the other panels?

[Alex Traska]

That's the CD tray. I wanted to give the rest a canvas type texture, but not the tray so it was as if the canvas was wrapped around the other faces. I messed around with giving the canvas a folded over and stapled "edge" around the tray face, but it didn't look right.

The entire face will be covered with a transparent tray and hence you wouldn't notice the texture as much anyway and certainly wouldn't be able to see the "stapled edge" effect. Keeping that face clean let the illustration "do the talking", if you like.

[CamarotaDesign]

very nice very nice.... If this is what they were looking for then its wonderfull.. Personally I am starting to really frown apon this style...ONLY because I see it EVERYWHERE.... the grungy splatters...the pink and brown colors... the whisping curvy stuff.. dont get me wrong it looks great!...

I've been noticing this style is being used everywhere too, Jriddim. I myself am even guilty, although I'm not big on flourishes and flowers, I usually go with grungy text and paint splatters. the key is appropriateness.

did anyone notice the style used for the billboard music awards was a grunge paint splatter style? I thought it was very innapropriate because that style really only works well for a few different types of music. You definately dont want to see that style on an R&B CD.

Comedy Central seems like it was one of the first mainstream media organizations to adapt the ultra grunge style, Very very crude designs in their commercials and show material, yet they were put together well and the information was easily accessible. Also, given the nature of many of the shows that comedy central airs, like crank yankers, chappelles show and drawn together, it was the perfect style. I guess as society gets more crude and loses fundamental aspects, yet at the same time advances in other aspects like self awareness and individualism we are going to see a lot more of these designs come out.

[Jriddim]

I've been noticing this style is being used everywhere too, Jriddim. I myself am even guilty, although I'm not big on flourishes and flowers, I usually go with grungy text and paint splatters. the key is appropriateness.

did anyone notice the style used for the billboard music awards was a grunge paint splatter style? I thought it was very innapropraite because that style really only works well for a few different types of music. You definately dont want to see that style on an R&B CD.

Comedy Central seems like it was one of the first mainstream media organizations to adapt the ultra grunge style, Very very crude designs in their commercials and show material, yet they were put together well and the information was easily accessible. Also, given the nature of many of the shows that comedy central airs, like crank yankers, chappelles show and drawn together, it was the perfect style. I guess as society gets more crude and loses fundamental aspects, yet at the same time advances in other aspects like self awareness and individualism we are going to see a lot more of these designs come out.


very well said.. I was going to mention comedy central.. and food network even!...not the splatters but the flourishes and flowers... its amazing how everyone can adapt a style.. dont even get me stared with the buttons :)

[Jriddim]

ps camarota....

your signature is hilarious

[CamarotaDesign]

Thanks man, It's from a Vonnegut novel.

My coworker was looking at my flourish collection the other day and said how she saw them on the food network the night before, "ohh they are so pretty"

[1ooScreamingTrees]

Personally I am starting to really frown apon this style

I find it interesting that when someone places a line, dot, etc. in a piece, it gets rightfully criticized for having extraneous communicative elements.

Then when something like this comes along, very in-style yet extremely lacking visual communication to sacrifice to the style trend gods, everyone falls in love with it.

I think we need to chiggidy-check ourselves before we wreck ourselves.

[Alex Traska]

I find it interesting that when someone places a line, dot, etc. in a piece, it gets rightfully criticized for having extraneous communicative elements.

Then when something like this comes along, very in-style yet extremely lacking visual communication to sacrifice to the style trend gods, everyone falls in love with it.

I think we need to chiggidy-check ourselves before we wreck ourselves.

interesting perspective.

[Jriddim]

absolutley

[Alex Traska]

i think what has to be born in mind is that there are two sides to being creative....

As well as being a designer, I am also a DJ. I own www.myhouse-yourhouse.net (http://www.myhouse-yourhouse.net) (or check my myspace: www.myspace.com/alextraska ), a global webcast radio, events network and record label. There are parallels between what one does as a DJ and what one does as a designer...

In order to carve out a living and raise your profile in either field you must, to an extent, produce work/performances for a particular market...whether that is a crowd, a client or a target audience. Bills have to be paid. As both a DJ and Graphic Designer, something I try to do is achieve a balance between what the client wants, what the target audience expects and what I want to achieve as an individual. It'd be great to become completely self-absorbed and produce work (whatever the nature of it may be) that I want to produce, but to what expense?

It would be an ideal situation if one could become completely self absorbed and yet still command regular and well paid work, and some achieve this. But for many, a balance is struck between individuality and expectation.

In terms of DJing, i'd NEVER play a record I didn't love and/or didn't want to play to a crowd even if that's what they were expecting...but I might play a SIMILAR record that I think/hope will satisfy their needs the result being that everyone is happy. This is exactly how I perceive the work I do as a designer.