ANM 324 Project 5
Creating a CD cover/back brings together all the design and technical skills we’ve studied this semester. These are small works of marketing art that, if successful, demand attention and help sell the artist they represent.

Here’s my general grading criteria for this project:

95-100- CD cover, spine and back is complete and artwork is challenging. Type has resonance and is very readable. The CD has excellent shelf appeal and demonstrates your clear command of the Illustrator toolset. Production info/upc included. The CD cover is a work of art!

90-95-CD is very well done but there are some minor flaws in concept or execution. Type styling may not resonate with the content or theme of the product or you may have created a less than spectacular composition of image and text. Omitted production info/upc.

85-89-CD is good but may not completely communicate the essence of the artist in either type resonance or design elements. Production notes missing.

80-85-Label has obvious technical and design issues that will prevent it from having good shelf appeal. Type doesn’t fit or image is too complex to be clearly understood by shoppers.

70-80-CD cover is not effective is communicating the essence of the product and major requirements are missing. There are significant technical flaws.

70-below very late work

Note: Late work will be downgraded by 10 pts

Rosenwald Group

Baotran Bui-Your CD looks beautiful! I really like the soft pastel color palette. I’m not familiar with this artist but the cover art is inviting and somewhat mysterious…it would have excellent shelf appeal. I especially like your use of artistic strokes..I am assuming this is your original work on front and back. It demonstrates outstanding skill with the tools in Illustrator. The only thing that’s missing is the upc and publishing notes which were required for the project.

Igor Gaburici-So you’re a fan of Latin music! You’ve done a good job assembling the photos for the front/back of the CD. Overlaying images in on the back is much more interesting that a simple grid but it does look like the small image of the woman in yellow has been distorted to fit…be careful to keep original proportions. My main concern with the composition is the relationship between front and back. You have an interesting design element with the hand on the back…maybe that could be used on the front? Is that the artist autograph on the front? It’s hard to read…maybe it could be selected and given more contrast? You did not include the spine but the upc and very minimal copyright looks OK.

Jerome Havens-
Mindless Self Indulgence looks like and interesting group…your cover is very attractive. I like the blend of vector artwork and the classic 50’s advertising images. The front and back are significantly different in style..my question would be how could you have them relate a little more coherently? What if the color tint on the back was based on the pin of the front? Just a thought…one of the goals of this project is to establish a level of consistently between the compositions on the front and back. Good job with all the publishing info and upc the track list is creative and you’ve done a nice job with the perspective to make the list fit the orientation of the placards. Very creative!

Shamus Sullivan-I searched Analytical Divinity and feel like you captured the essence of the group with your CD cover. Their logo is an important part of their identity along with some unusual themes…The Abducted fits right in. You’ve used high contrast/posterized images effectively in the composition. The alien space ship, in the process of abducting someone, is very well done. It tells a story, which I think would be very engaging to viewers or shoppers. Typography is very readable…drop shadow helps give an interesting depth to the list of tracks. Your production info and UPC meet the requirement. You’ve demonstrated skill in a broad range of Illustrator techniques.

Yauheni Shubin-The CD title, “Fantastic Violin”, is certainly captured in the cover with all the images. The front and back have totally different styles with the back created in vector art and the front with placed images. I would like to see more continuity between the front and back. The only common theme is the title. What if you brought an element from the front to the back (violin in place of large musical note) or extended the yellow orange radial gradient into the front cover? I think the cover would be more dramatic with fewer small instruments…this would give more visual hierarchy to the artist holding the larger violin.

Kroencke Group

Olga Gaburici-Your cover is very creative and is one of the best examples of front and back with a strong continuity. I like the cropped face, which establishes a sends of mystery or moodiness for the album. To me, the back is a stronger composition..the color type and image all work well together. On the front, I think it would be stronger if the type overlaid the wings. This would give the artists image stronger visual hierarchy. I do like the rich graphics and color palette you’ve used. Very nice work!

Jana Heidenreich-The Andy Caldwell CD is primarily an exercise in contrast and typography. It’s quite a departure from previous albums in which his images is prominent. I like the color palette you’ve used with its rich orange highlight along with white and gray type. The color palette enhances the text readability and hierarchy. It’s a simple but effective.

You did not include the upc and publishing information that was required for the project.

Robin Reeder
-You’ve done a very nice job of establishing a strong continuity between the front and back
of your CD. The “devilish” image is very engaging and I love the arc of the tail that is revealed on the back. That’s very well done! Typography is fun and readable..OK..maybe the treatment of the type on the front title is a touch difficult to read. I can’t really see the detail in the center of that type..is it abstract strokes or tiny images? Overall a very creative composition..upc and publishing info is excellent.

Olesya Sytnyk
-You are definitely getting into the sprit of Christmas. I’m surprised there weren’t more holiday themes with this project. The stars and flakes on the front and back, along
with the gradient color palette, really give the cover excellent continuity. You picked an interesting font for the track names and title. I think the arrangement and scale of the type on the front could be better for readability. THROUGH is rather lost in the center..I would recommend just making them all the same color and stack a little closer together to improve readability. This would also establish a slightly stronger hierarchy for the musical staff..I’d even like to see it stand out with stronger gradient in the background under it. Looks like you had fun with this project..production and upc are excellent!

Elizabeth Harper
-I really like the original artwork on the cover..a vector illustration can be very eye-catching and that’s important for a CD where some might purchase on impulse. The color palette on front is soft and pastel as is the back but I think it would be a plus if you were picking-up a common color. For example; what if the background of the girl’s image was one of the colors in the abstract blend
on the back. Does that make sense? I also like the font you’ve used for Ivy…it’s soft and lyrical…why not use that same font on some elements on the back? I find the san serif font to be a little hard edged compared to the portrait..just a thought. Your upc and publishing info is perfect!

Frazier Group

Kristina Farrell-I really like this artwork. I think it’s the simple color palette of yellow and black that gives is excellent contrast and readability. I also like the old-school TV sets which kind of resonate the 50’s. The do not cross caution tape is a fun element…why not have some tape going across one or 2 of the sets? Seems like that would further the mystery of Do Not Cross! I don’t know much about the group Persona4 but the cover is engaging and I’d like to know more about their music.

I see from their website that the TV is a theme they use. Looks like there are a lot of tracks on the CD….is this a triple album? Fun and very creative work!

Jasson Gist-
Funny! I like your take on the alien punk band from Star Wars….Max Rebo. The composition is eye-catching and typography is very readable. The continuity between front and back is established with the Max charcter…I think it would be a plus if the color palette for blue-skinned Max Rebo was the same on front and back. Just my take. Publish info looks good..upc looks like it was an image not original done in Illustrator?

Susan Jackson-I’m sure you had some fun with your CD and the Blues Down Low Jook Joint. That classic old building is a great backdrop for the blues and keeping in in black and white further communicates the legacy of the music. The smaller images on front help us relate to artists (including your son) and I think the angular arrangement adds energy to the composition. The back of the CD is rather striking in contrast with the full color steps leading to what I must assume is the down low joint where the music is played? To me that color contrast is rather stark…I have a couple of suggestions. You could show a glow of the same color coming through the door or window on the image in the front cover..or use Photoshop to change the tint of the color of the steps/door on the back to a blue tint that matches the font and spine. To me this would link the front and back even more closely together…it’s just a thought and a direction that might be worth exploring. Type is very readable and upc with publishing information is excellent.

Tiffany Ross-I think your CD cover is one of the most successful in class! I really like the color palette and the fluid graphics that fill the front and back. It looks great! Where did you get the inspiration to have the words streaming from his mouth? It’s very eye-catching and demands attention. This would be very attractive on the shelf..what more can I say? UPC and publishing info are there..but I’m going back to look at the artwork! Nice!!