neon bible

This is the album cover for The Arcade Fire's Neon Bible.  The design is quite interesting for a couple of  reasons.  One, it is unusual for a band to not plaster their name on the front, so I think that is admirable.  Two, the design itself is almost Victorian and Art Deco at the same time.  The border surrounding the bible-like neon image is slightly Victorian in style.  The different angles of the neon bible itself is very Art Deco. 

Cool music.  Cool album art.

HAUNTED

Chuck Palahniuk is my absolute favorite author.  Not only is he the genius behind Fight Club, but he's written even better things that most people have yet to discover.  Now, his novels are quite graphic and rather raunchy, but the deeper meanings within each book have been life changing for me.  Some of his writing literally gives me chills.

Now, the cover of Haunted is a little freaky, BUT it's also ridiculously cool.  I'm a sucker for a good book cover.  In fact, I probably never would have picked up one of his books had I not been intrigued by the design.  The typography is perfect for two reasons:  It has an eerie feel to it just on its own, which plays off the title.  AND the book itself is about a writing retreat that ended up horribly, so I can imagine them feverishly documenting their experiences with handwriting similar to that shown on the cover.

The white portions of the face on the cover are actually glow-in-the-dark.  I definitely did not know that until I was reading before bed, switched the light off, and then nearly had a heart attack.

Now, as a side thought, here is a quote from the novel:

"In the big factory of perfecting human souls, the Earth was a kind of tumbler. The same as the kind people use to polish rocks. All souls come here to rub the sharp edges off each other. All of us, we're meant to be worn smooth by conflict and pain of every kind. To be polished. There was nothing bad about this. This wasn't suffering. It was erosion. It was just another, a basic, an important step in the refining process."

MOVEMENTS!

I used the same book to do this assignment that I used for a design blog earlier.  It is Gig Posters: Rock Show Art of the 21st Century.  I thought it would be interesting to see how many of these posters resemble the posters from the Victorian, Arts & Crafts, Art Nouveau, Early Modern, and Art Deco movements.

VICTORIAN:

On the left is a poster for Hank Williams, and on the right is an example from the textbook.  I think the busy, intricate illustrations are very similar.  Although the illustration on the left is within an oval frame, the borders surrounding both illustrations are nearly identical.  Also, though not shown in the text book example, text within banners was very popular in Victorian design, which can clearly be seen in the Hank Williams poster.

ARTS & CRAFTS:

The Neko Case poster and the textbook example have extremely similar line characteristics within the illustrations.  I think the bold use of black and white is apparent in both.  The Neko Case poster could easily be mistaken for a woodcut illustration, which the textbook example (from The Hobby Horse, 1886) just so happens to be.  Intricate woodblock illustrations were the essence of what William Morris stood for during the Arts and Crafts movement.

ART NOUVEAU:

I think this one is pretty self explanatory.  The resemblance is uncanny.  The Art Nouveau artists had a fascination with the woman figure, particularly from a side angle.  The stylized hair pattern was a hallmark of the era.  The Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Moximo Park, and Hot Hot Heat poster is a direct descendant from the work of Alphonse Mucha in his Job cigarette paper poster.

EARLY MODERN:

The flat color, the simplicity, the self-explanatory design.  These two are alike in almost every way.  Even down to the black background.  The Wilco poster is for a concert in Washington, DC.  The Washington Monument is the center of attention, and it is followed with the largely printed "Wilco" underneath it.  Minimal information gets the point across quickly and effectively, and that was the whole point of Plakastil.  This can be seen in both the Wilco and Priester posters.

ART DECO:

These two aren't really as similar as the others have been.  I do think that the Franz Ferdinand and Death Cab for Cutie poster has some Art Deco qualities.  When I look at both of these posters side by side, my eye is forced upwards, which is a HUGE characteristic of Art Deco design.  Aside from just that fact, I think the interesting typography on both is something to be noted as well.  

GELATO

In 2009, I traveled with a several members of my senior class to Europe for our spring break.  Our first stop was London, the second was Paris, and we saved the best for last: Italy.  We went a few places in Italy: Assisi, Florence and Rome.  Each one had something about it more magical than the last.  Though the scenery and architecture is absolutely spectacular, there is nothing better than the food.  American translations of Italian cuisine is appalling!  Aside from all the pizzas, pastas, and breads I ate, there was one thing that really stuck with me... GELATO!

So fantastically delicious!

Naturally, upon stumbling around the internet, I had to stop and admire this package design.

What I think is truly spectacular about these is that each flavor shows the charm of Italy, while still maintaining a very clean and modern design.  I would definitely buy this in a grocery store, no matter how much money I was spending for just a few spoonfuls.