Project Title: Moby Dick Typographic Book Cover
Source Material: "Moby-Dick" or "The Whale" by Herman Melville
Approach:
I admittedly have not read the complete work of "Moby Dick" or "The Whale" by Herman Melville, but am familiar with the imagery. I began by researching important imagery & symbolism from the novel, and what other artists have done in approach to creating a cover for "Moby Dick." While the white whale is popular imagery as the most memorable aspect of the novel, I decided on focusing on the story as a journey so the book cover acts as a map for the crews passageway. I took inspiration from vintage maps in the way the text follows the meridian lines, as well as the inclusion of the white whale as if it was a sea monster drawn on to an old map.
I decided on a quote from the novel fro the back cover, "It is not down on any map, true places never are," as a cheeky nod to the map themed book cover. To discover the context of the quote, you would have to open up the book to find out.
Final Design:
The final design is a full book cover jacket or dust wrapper for "Moby Dick" which includes the front, back, spine, and inside flaps. While the white whale is iconic imagery, I aimed to create an original cover that focused on other aspects of the novel, so I did a map featuring key images such as the coffin, the boat, and of course, the white whale tucked away by Herman Melville's name. On the inside flaps however, you are greeted by the white whale who haunts Captain Ahab from cover to cover.
These designs were created under the guide of Jen Stern at Tyler School of Art & Architecture at Temple University in Typography GAD-3011.
This is for personal use only, and not for sale or reproduction. If you would like a similar design for your own brand, please contact me for a freelance design commission.
