The document discusses conventions used and challenged in the design of a music album. It describes:
- Using a natural, handwritten font and nature imagery to match conventions of the indie folk genre.
- Developing conventions by using beach landscape imagery rather than forests, and including performers rather than just the artist.
- Challenging conventions by including supernatural imagery and not just promoting the artist.
- Following conventions like a track list on the back, and developing conventions like applying a film look to images.
- Using the artist's name prominently in the magazine ad to catch attention, as is standard for the medium, but including performers instead of just the artist which challenges genre conventions.
4. Panel 1
I decided to use the convention of the natural and handwritten font to enhance the rustic
handmade style and atmosphere.
This convention can be seen every music video within the genre of Indie-Folk such as,
โTired Ponyโ, โTroye Sivanโ, and โThe Native Siblingโ. This generic convention of the
typography is popular within the genre because it ties into the naturalistic and
minimalistic conventions of the genre which was therefore perfect for my prints.
Another convention I used in my panel 1 design was the convention of using natural,
outside imagery. The imagery of the natural landscape is used in many indie folk bands
such as Daughter and Sufjan Stevens. This is, however, developed in my production by using
the Beach/sea-side landscape instead of green fields and muted brown forests, the beach is
a cold muted blue that is vast and bleak. This development of the convention aids the
conveyance of themes and story in my production. I do also go against the convention in
the images that I used, it is an image from my video production compared to other Digipaks
that use photoshoots.
One of the conventions I developed is the convention of all music videos of including the
artist/band on the cover. I developed this by using the performers and actresses on the
cover. This challenges the convention of promoting the artist.
In my design of the front cover I use the imagery of smoke and disintegration to highlight
Megan's disappearance from Oliviaโs life, this supernatural like imagery is widely avoided
by the genre of indie-folk and I challenge this convention by blending it with the imagery
and themes to create a surreal and symbolic image.
A convention of the medium of Digipaks is to use the Artists name in large writing to
fulfil the purpose of the Digipak - as advertisement of the artist and the song itself.
This convention id used in our Digipak to draw attention to the artist, for example when
consumers are searching for an album in a store, like HMV, the artists name needs to be
easy to spot so they can find the album and remember it which fulfils Goodwins theory.
6. Panel 2 & 3
Inside my CD case, I chose to use a single image that spanned across
the whole case, this joint image idea has been used in many other
Album/CD designs within the medium and not just the genre. Examples
of this include The Northerlies and Bill Callahan. This convention
is popular however within the indie-folk genre. I use this
convention in my design to create an empty atmosphere, there is a
lot of negative space in the image showing here as lonely in the 1st
third of the image.
The convention of nature imagery continues through this design by
using the forest location in my image. This convention of the album
design is immensely popular within the genre and is also used in the
designs for Artists like โSubzar' and โBill Callahanโ.
The lens flare is also a convention of the genre that is used in
this design. The lens flare is a sign of the natural ambient light
from the sun which goes hand in hand with the organic atmosphere and
conventions. The convention is also used in the artwork for albums
by Elli Goulding and One Direction.
The autumnal costumes are also a convention of the genre as they fit
with the outdoors atmosphere across the genre. This is used in all
my productions and is highlighted in this print production panel.
There are many examples of how this is used in other productions
such as 'The Stavesโ.
8. CD Print
I chose to develop the convention of printing an
image onto the CD by blending it into the imagery
behind the CD. The decision of using this image
was made to highlight Olivia's loneliness without
Meg. This development of the convention developed
the themes of my production.
The use of the lens flare in this is also symbolic
of natural ambient light and the organic
atmosphere of the genre. Examples of this
convention being used in other productions is
Ellie Goulding and Adoleo.
It also features the main themes of the entire
production, their relationship. This theme is a
convention of the genre and is also used in the
videos for example The Head and the Heart
10. Panel 2 & 3
The main convention of a 4 panel design is the track list
displayed on the back or panel 4. I decided that I would follow
this convention early on to suit the style of the 4 panel
design. However, I did debate whether I should use an insert
with the track list and other add-ons on it, however I came to
the conclusion that the convention of the track list is a more
suited decision for my project
I decided to use the convention of creating a natural handmade
atmosphere, and develop it to include how the shots look. This
meant I colour graded the image to give the photo a celluloid
film look with film grain and grunge. This decision to develop
the convention largely changed the look of the image and
developed the emotion.
The font was also a significant aspect of this design and at
first I decided I would challenge the convention of a rustic
handwritten font and instead use โPorterโ a modern minimalistic
font, however this did not fit at all with the overall organic
atmosphere and therefore I changed it to Canter
12. Magazine advert
One of the main conventions of the medium of an advert in a magazine is to have the name
of the artist in large bold letters at the top of the image, in order to catch the
attention of the consumer reading this magazine. Promoting the artist (Natasha North) is
the key aim here and using her name in large encourages the audience to buy the album or
the single. This convention is one I have specifically chose to use, this is because the
name 'Natasha North' dominates the advert, making it impossible not to see when browsing
through this magazine. The large typography I have used connotes that there is
importance in her name and that it should be read and remembered. This is effective in
not only securing the name in their mind but it also makes the artist seem exciting and
relevant which creates a need for the consumers to have what the artist is offering,
further promoting them.
The name of the album also being large letters is another convention I have used.
However, as Goodwin's theory states it serves as an advertisement for the artist.
The way I have incorporated the text into the image is another key aspect here, I have
included the most important information that is vital for an advert, such as the date of
release and the name of the product and brand (Natasha North), but the design of the ad
also needs to be bold and memorable to catch the readers attention as they browse
through the magazine. That is why I used vibrant colours such as the reds and oranges of
autumn. These colours are vibrant and a convention of the medium because it draws the
eye and alerts the reader.
The main convention of the genre and the medium is the use of the imagery of the artist.
This creates a face for the consumer to identify the artists 'brand' as. This is an
effective way of creating the image of the brand for the artist, however, I challenged
this in my ad; largely due to my artist, Natasha North, being not well known to the
public artist, this meant that her image would not have an impact on how the readers
viewed this as it would be as recognisable as our performers. Therefore, I decided to
use the performers/actors from my music video instead.
