The Project: To design three conceptual book covers for a classic novel of my choosing utilizing various creative strategies. 

These covers include one designer's choice, one typographic, and one homemade. The goal of these designs was to appropriately echo the messages and themes the reader will find within. 

Early in the creative process I had considered several different approaches to my designs. While the subject matter of this book is somber and quite heavy, I didn't want the covers to feel too violent. Like Atticus Finch, I wanted to find the beauty in each element while recognizing the sadness. I also tried several variations, and ultimately landed on the more simple of each. 

For designer's choice, I played with replacing texture in an unexpected way. I was inspired by both the knotty tree in which Boo Radley places various objects for the children to find and the most striking of symbols in this book, the mockingbird. I used this strategy to bring emphasis to the mockingbird, a profound symbol of innocence in a world filled with both light and darkness. 

For my typographic option, my cover utilizes the physical elements to place the title between the gavel and the base. In this way, the title is symbolically crushed by the gavel. This represents the discrimination, ignorance, and racism that ultimately crushes the innocent. 

For my homemade cover, I chose to take a photo isolating one feather. This brings attention to the missing element, the bird that is no longer there. I also played with texture, using wood grain reminiscent of an old porch one might find in a setting such as Alabama in the 1930s.