The Brief
I was required to redesign a cover art of an existing album, and this will be done by looking at three record labels: Factory Records, Young God Records and Sacred Bones Records. All three have displayed distinctive roles in the visual culture of music and the popular culture of their time. I will be focusing on crafting a standout gatefold record sleeve that will be informed and designed for either one of two labels: Sacred Bones Records and Young Gods Records. There will be a strong emphasis on exploration of different media, mediums and processes to create the final cover art that can take on a cult following of its own.
Chosen label: Sacred Bones Records
Sacred Bones Records is an independent record label and publishing company Brooklyn, New York that started over 15 years ago in the basement of a record store and has gone to become a critically respected label that is synonymous with forward-thinking music and culture.
Precedents from Sacred Bones Records
Kanye West - YEEZUS
The album I have chosen to redesign is an album titled "Yeezus" by Kanye West. I chose to redesign the Yeezus cover simply because it has no design aside from a small square of red sealant tape.
Yeezus Redesign
Front Cover
The front is comprised of an ink rendered sketch of a bask (head sculptor) of Kanye West, a dark background enclosed by a midtone border, a small red square, and for the album title I've utilized the Yeezus logo. My design concept is inspired by Greek mythology as Kanye West has often stated that he believes he is a god, and has at times compared himself to Jesus. In ancient Greece sculptures were made to tell stories about gods and goddesses because they were an important part of everyday life. The name Yeezus is derived from the name 'Jesus', Kanye used used this name to position himself as a god of rap. The use of medium tone is inspired by Greek mythology as well, as ancient Greek sculptures were devoid of colour.
Back Cover
The back cover consists of a track list, a solid grey background, red rectangle and an illustration of a crown of thorns. The font I've used for the track list is Sabon because, it is the font used in the Sacred Bones Records cover's lettering. The crown of thorns signifies Yeezus (Kanye West) as he often compares himself to Jesus, and the red rectangle signifies the red sealant tape as it is the only element that sums up the whole design of the original Yeezus cover art.
Ink Rendered Illustrations
Final Design
