THE ART OF THE COVER.

After reading The Unbearable Lightness of Being early last year for the second time, I wondered about the art of the cover, and tracked down the artist’s own website.
David Miller’s work is nurtured from his fascination of Bohemian circus life and the Czech tradition of pantomime theatre. I assume his frequent visits to Prague brought him into contact with Milan Kundera. 

 

REFINED PALETTE

It was the refined palette and striking graphics – much like the American rock band The White Stripes – that what drew me to Haruki Murakami’s books, long before learning that they were also really good books.

Standing out on the shelves in a collective statement.
They’re a great example of book design and marketing, working beautifully together.

And so, I began my Murakami adventure with Norwegian Wood and Kafka On The Shore.
(both wonderful, and a little strange.)

The art for these covers were created by Suzanne Dean; the Creative Director at Vintage books.

In a recent instagram post Dean mentioned the source for some of the images used for the new cover designs for Ian McEwan’s catalogue (below).
One of them came from The Anonymous Project Collection – an intriguing source of vintage photographs I’d never heard of before.
It was for On Chesil Beach, and it shows how the strength of a fresh book design can reach a fresh audience, as well as rekindle a read from those who are already fans.

It’s in the art of the cover where we can make a connection, as well as the quality of the content.

Worth a post simply to remember that.