OUGD503 - Penguin Design Awards: Brief

OUGD503 - Studio Brief 1/Penguin Design Awards 

Brief:

Introduction: 

The Penguin Design Award is a student competition that helps to project student talent into the industry. Standout cover design is an integral part of the success of a book and Penguin Random House has created thousands of iconic book covers throughout the years. The vital role of illustrators and designers in the production of some of the world's best-loved adult and children's books has created and defined the identity of UK publishing lists.

They value creativity and design incredibly highly, and started the Penguin Random House Design Award ten years ago to encourage the next generation of designers to use their amazing talents to help us tell our author’s stories.

There are three categories to submit to; Fiction, Non-fiction and Children's literature, after reading through the introductions to all three categories concluded I wanted to produce a cover design for the non-fiction category which is for Caitlin Moran's book, How to Be a Woman.

The Brief:

We would like you to design a new, classic cover for Caitlin Moran's book, How to Be a Woman.The design needs to feel timeless and classic, whilst at the same time making it clear to the reader that it is very entertaining and often very funny. The book should feel very accessible, immediately ‘pickupable’ and something that exists within the world of Popular Culture. You are welcome to use an image of the author, but do not feel that you need to take that approach.The ideal design will make us smile, make us want to own a copy of the book, and keep it proudly on our shelves for a long time.

What the judges are looking for:

We are looking for a striking cover design that is well executed, has an imaginative concept and clearly places the book for its market. While all elements of the jacket need to work together as a cohesive whole, remember that the front cover must be effective on its own and be eye-catching within a crowded bookshop setting. It also needs to be able to work on screen for digital retailers such as Amazon.

Interpretation of the brief:  

This brief is a great platform to gain exposure as the brief itself is a relatively low workload producing a single book cover however the established reputation of penguin would create great exposure opportunities, With first prize receiving work experience as well this is an added opportunity that will look great on a CV. Typically student design competitions seem to take advantage of students however the Penguin Design Awards seems incredibly ethical with a professional design process throughout the competition, a paid internship for first prize and a substantial amount of prize money for the runners up. 

I chose the non-fiction category as I felt it would give me the most creative expression due to the colloquial tone of voice of the writer, I felt I could creatively articulate Caitlin Moran's quirky style engagingly to the audience and improve on the current cover design. The brief is fairly assertive in terms of what it wants from the resolution however this can be conflicting in places for example it uses language like 'new' and 'contemporary' however juxtaposes this with the likes of 'classic cover' which will require detailed design development to ensure the resolution articulates a happy medium of both. Working for print and digital will raise some difficulties within its translation between the different mediums in targeting the audience effectively.