Jacob Covey over at Fantagraphics is clearly a man after my own heart. This is basically the answer I was trying to come up with in response to a comment a few weeks back:
"[...] I know that nobody is viewing this cover and having these thoughts pop into their mind. For the record, I don't believe it's a conscious response that the book browser has to these things; I do believe there is an unconcscious response though. On my best day the goal is not to 'market' a book but to distill unconscious cues into evoking some story about the content in a single, eye-catching cover design..."
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7 comments:
Hey, just a note to say you're very much missed. Hope you get back to blogging soon, a new post here is always appreciated.
Ed—
Thanks! I really do appreciate the sentiment. Holidays and pre-holiday deadlines really got the better of me, but I hope to be back up and running soon... in fact, there should be a new blog by me showing up on the Criterion blog within the next day or so, which I'll cross-post here eventually.
I clicked on the link to your blog(s), by the way, and while I haven't had a chance to really explore them, I like what I've read so far!
Eric-
Cool, I figured it was just the time of year and other work and all. Glad to hear there'll be some new reading soon. I think I just got it in my head to inquire today because I've been immersed in Berlin Alexanderplatz this week, with the foldout disc package spread out across a table the whole time, so your design is particularly in my head at this point.
Thanks for the kind words about my blogs, too, although at this point my comics/general blog has been long dormant, and I'm mostly just posting about film every day at Only the Cinema.
Yes, your posts are missed. ...As much as I love seeing myself at the top of your blog mind you.
Ask and ye shall receive: http://www.criterion.com/blog/2008_01_01_archive.html#392876516420263625
Also:
Ed—
I'd definitely be interested to see you pick up that 100 Great Works of Sequential Art series again—I'm a sucker for those kinds of lists, particularly when they can expose me to things beyond the usual suspects (I've never read any Brian Chippendale, for example.) But I can definitely see how two blogs is a bit much for anyone to keep up with... and I think your blog on Berlin might be even longer than the monster I just posted!
Jacob—
Thanks for the sentiment. Don't worry, Flog! is still at the top of my reading list, if not my blog...
Hey Eric, I've been meaning to pick up the Top 100 again for a long time. I already had the list pretty much worked out in advance, so maybe I'll just tweak it a little and start that up again sometime soon. And I'd definitely recommend Ninja to anyone with no qualms. Are you a fan of the Kramer's Ergot/Picturebox-style comics in general? Like many of those comics, Chippendale's book is a gorgeous (and huge! - it's like a surfboard) art object first and foremost. But there's also a great deal more substance to it, for those willing to put in the time with Chippendale's impossibly detailed inkwork, than even its biggest supporters have been giving it credit for.
Your new blogs on the Berlin design look great, can't wait to read those, once I finish my own post on the three episodes of the series I watched earlier this evening.
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