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MICROPUBLISHING: Poetry Zine / Chapbook

zine01

Your next zine will not be your own writing, but that of a poet. Your assignment is to create a zine that merges type and image in an expressive and reflective way. This zine will be a poetry chapbook that synthesizes the words of a chosen poet, with your creative and expressive imagery.

There are going to be a few rules to follow for this project, but try not to think of them as limitations, so much as opportunities for expression.

  1. 20 pages (including covers)
  2. Black and white, unless…
  3. No internet images whatsoever
  4. You may print the text once (make copies, enlargements, etc. from that)

In particular, I want you to think about illustration vs. interpretation. Are the images/layouts you are creating showing the reader what they’re reading in the text? Or is it adding to the impact of the text by doing something else?

Project Timeline

Wed Sept 21 – Begin Project / Get text
Mon Sept 26 – Review progress
Wed Sept 28 – Group Critique
Mon Oct 03 – Implement Changes
Wed Oct 05 – Project Due

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TYPE + IMAGE: Book Jackets

kidd-deskIn this day of high speed internet and instant information, do we still take time to appreciate the classics. Is information like classic literature, art, poetry still pertinent and vital? How would you encourage a 17 year old to put down the phone and pick up a book? Perhaps that book just needs to be presented in a new and interesting way?

Your problem for this assignment is to re-package a familiar piece of literature in a way that is appealing to younger readers (16-29). Your task is two-fold. First, you must redesign the book cover. It should stand out amongst the overcrowded shelves, AND it should represent the story in an honest way.

The most successful book covers are those that give a hint of the story inside, without revealing all the details.

  • Design the front, back, spine, and flaps of the book.
  • The book cover must include, the title and author. The Penguin logo must be on the spine and back. Download it here.
  • Give your book a barcode by visiting this site, or download this vector file.
  • Make your book as much as possible like a “real” book. Add an ISBN number, reviews, price, and other details.
  • There are no color or typographic limitations on this assignment.

OBJECTIVES

  • Increase your ability as a planner and form giver
  • Develop an awareness of the relationship between design and meaning
  • Increase and improve the quality idea generation (quality & quantity)
  • Understand and identify a “target” audience
  • Increase conceptual skills through research

PROCESS

You will be required to maintain thorough documentation of your process throughout this and all assignments in this class. Keep a collection of everything pertaining to this project (project sheet, research, sketches, thumbnails, copies, etc.) and bring it to each class meeting. This collection will be turned in at the completion of this assignment and will be part of your final grade.

PROJECT COMPONENTS & PRESENTATION

  • One book cover mounted on 15″ x 20″ black mat board
  • One book cover attached to an actual book
  • One process notebook

DEADLINES

  • Mon Sept 19 – Introduce Project/ Research / Begin thumbnails sketches
  • Wed Sept 21 – 3 full-color (8.5”x11”) computer comps due for book cover
  • Mon Sept 26 – revisions due for book covers / 1 full-color comp (cover, back cover, spine, flaps)
  • Wed Sept 28 – Revisions of book cover due
  • Mon Oct 03 – Finished book cover due

Book and book cover design resources:

CHOOSE FROM THESE TITLES:

Moby Dick
Herman Melville

The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Robert Louis Stevenson

The Fall of the House of Usher
Edgar Allan Poe

The Catcher in the Rye
J.D. Salinger

Treasure Island
Robert Louis Stevenson

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Washington Irving

Uncle Tom’s Cabin Or, Life among the Lowly
Harriet Beecher Stowe

Little Women
Louisa May Alcott

Of Mice And Men
John Steinbeck

Frankenstein
Mary Shelley

Dracula
Bram Stoker

Walt Whitman
Leaves of Grass

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MICROPUBLISHING: PROJECT 02 – COLLECTIONS

Bernd & Hilla Becher • Blast Furnaces • Image via C4gallery.com

Your next zine will reflect the theme of COLLECTIONS.

Not everyone has a collection, but some people collect records, beanie babies, baseball cards, stamps, cars, books, posters, houseplants, or a million different things.

However, for this assignment, I don’t want you to just go home and photograph your collection of Breaking Bad bobbleheads. Instead, think back to artists like Bernd & Hilla Becher (1, 2), Kate Bingaman-Burt, and Ed Ruscha (1, 2, 3, 4).

You will choose an object or subject to photograph, draw, or otherwise document, and create a 12 to 24-page zine about that collection of objects, with commentary. Whatever the subject, I want there to be text and images. You will write about the things your are documenting: where did you find it, describe the context, the date/time, people involved, etc…

And once again, it can be set digitally, but the zine composed by hand. There should also be some consideration given to a special production technique of your choice: a page that folds out to reveal a bigger image, hand-added color to each copy, block printing, emboss, colored paper, vellum, … something else? It could be as simple as using a different paper stock for the cover than the interior.

Project Components:
1 Paste-up Original
5 Photocopies (with an interesting production element)

Project Timeline:
Mon Sept 12: Begin Project / Brainstorm / In-class project
Wed Sept 14: Review Progress
Mon Sept 19: Final Edits
Wed Sept 21: Project Due