What do we have to do?
Design a refreshing new cover for Anthony Burgess's eye-opening novel, A Clockwork Orange.
'A Clockwork Orange is as dazzling and inventive to new readers today as it was when it was first published half a century ago. The story is well known both in celluloid and print so it is essential to come at it from a fresh angle. Try to design a new cover for a new generation of readers, avoiding the obvious clichés. Originality is key.'
Who is it for?
Young Adult/Mature Adult readers, certainly NOT for children
Important themes
'A Clockwork Orange is as dazzling and inventive to new readers today as it was when it was first published half a century ago. The story is well known both in celluloid and print so it is essential to come at it from a fresh angle. Try to design a new cover for a new generation of readers, avoiding the obvious clichés. Originality is key.'
Who is it for?
Young Adult/Mature Adult readers, certainly NOT for children
Important themes
- Government corruption and manipulation
- Gang violence
- Good and evil
- Misunderstood Youths
Deliverables
1 x Cover incorporating the A PUFFIN BOOK logo, and specific to the design template B format, 198mm high x 129mm wide, spine width 10mm
What does it stand for?
- Needs a point of difference, something fresh and uplifting
- Strong use of typography
- An imaginative concept and original interpretation
Research
Initial Findings
Initial Findings
A Clockwork Orange truly captivated me with its shocking, tense and explicit storyline; I have never read anything like it before. I was slightly concerned that I loved the book so much because it is so violent and gruesome in more than half of the content, but the more I reflected on my opinion I realised that my response was the way it was due to the excellence in Burgess's style of writing incorporating inspiring themes and motifs.
The brief states that the design has to avoid cliche themes, which will be pretty difficult as the whole book is so subjective and open to interpretation, not to mention extremely difficult to understand for those who have not read the book themselves. A lot of the existing book covers that I have come across feature common aspects including: oranges (fruit), orange as a colour, clockwork cogs/ mechanical references or distinctive aspects of Kubrick's interpretation of the film for example Alex's false eyelashes and bowler hat (which aren't mentioned in the book!)
The meaning behind the title of the book is comes from an old Cockney rhyming slang phrase; 'As queer as a clockwork orange". Burgess has amplified this in the context of humans being endowed with free will to choose between good and evil. Evil has to exist alongside good as it is inhuman to be totally good, as it is totally evil. In other words, an orange is 'oozing with juice and sweetness', and if it were to be 'clockwork' it would be wound up by a higher power; long story short meaning that the almighty state, God or the Devil have the power to manipulate those below them.
Further reading into themes
There are actually so many in-depth themes in A Clockwork Orange, more so than I initially discovered myself. Discovering these and reflecting upon them in context of the book makes it so much more meaningful and interesting. I'm thinking that choosing one of these themes as a starting point will be a great way of narrowing down my initial ideas and thumbnail sketches, and allow a more structured route of avoiding the obvious cliches.
Existing covers and artwork
There are many existing covers for A Clockwork Orange, each illustrator having interpreted the content of the book in interesting and individual ways. I mentioned earlier that I wasn't so keen on the designs that emphasised Stanley Kubrik's interpretation of the book on screen, because it removes the authenticity of the original writing. For example, David Pelham's cover produced in 1972 includes many of the elements from the film released only a year before, including the bowler hat and the eyelashes.
The most recent cover designed by Jonathan Barnbrook heavily utilises typography and space to entice an audience. Director at penguin, Jim Stoddart quoted “this incredibly striking design with [a] large orange circle” which had no additional text. “It’s really important to gauge these first impressions emotionally, before your brain takes over to justify the really ‘smart’ ideas instead,”
https://www.creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog/2013/november/barnbrooks-a-clockwork-orange-cover/
This is something I would like to consider myself. Would it be better to illustrate a cover that is more open to interpretation rather than trying to summarise an important element through imagery?
Plan of Action
The brief states that the design has to avoid cliche themes, which will be pretty difficult as the whole book is so subjective and open to interpretation, not to mention extremely difficult to understand for those who have not read the book themselves. A lot of the existing book covers that I have come across feature common aspects including: oranges (fruit), orange as a colour, clockwork cogs/ mechanical references or distinctive aspects of Kubrick's interpretation of the film for example Alex's false eyelashes and bowler hat (which aren't mentioned in the book!)
The meaning behind the title of the book is comes from an old Cockney rhyming slang phrase; 'As queer as a clockwork orange". Burgess has amplified this in the context of humans being endowed with free will to choose between good and evil. Evil has to exist alongside good as it is inhuman to be totally good, as it is totally evil. In other words, an orange is 'oozing with juice and sweetness', and if it were to be 'clockwork' it would be wound up by a higher power; long story short meaning that the almighty state, God or the Devil have the power to manipulate those below them.
Further reading into themes
There are actually so many in-depth themes in A Clockwork Orange, more so than I initially discovered myself. Discovering these and reflecting upon them in context of the book makes it so much more meaningful and interesting. I'm thinking that choosing one of these themes as a starting point will be a great way of narrowing down my initial ideas and thumbnail sketches, and allow a more structured route of avoiding the obvious cliches.
- Inviolability of free will
- Necessity of commitment in life
- Inherent evil of the State
- Duality as the ultimate reality (good vs evil, man vs machine etc)
- Christ
- Classical music
- Milk
- Nadsat
- Darkness, light and the moon
- Lightness and dark
Existing covers and artwork
There are many existing covers for A Clockwork Orange, each illustrator having interpreted the content of the book in interesting and individual ways. I mentioned earlier that I wasn't so keen on the designs that emphasised Stanley Kubrik's interpretation of the book on screen, because it removes the authenticity of the original writing. For example, David Pelham's cover produced in 1972 includes many of the elements from the film released only a year before, including the bowler hat and the eyelashes.
The most recent cover designed by Jonathan Barnbrook heavily utilises typography and space to entice an audience. Director at penguin, Jim Stoddart quoted “this incredibly striking design with [a] large orange circle” which had no additional text. “It’s really important to gauge these first impressions emotionally, before your brain takes over to justify the really ‘smart’ ideas instead,”
https://www.creativereview.co.uk/cr-blog/2013/november/barnbrooks-a-clockwork-orange-cover/
This is something I would like to consider myself. Would it be better to illustrate a cover that is more open to interpretation rather than trying to summarise an important element through imagery?
Plan of Action
- Have a really good think about the approach I would like to take, and the desired affect I would like to have on my audience
- Lots of rough sketches
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