Re-Covered Books: Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
November 28, 2011 - By Bobby Solomon - Category: Re-Covered Books
This month we wanted to do something a little more open, and a little more special. To make things more open we decided that we’d tackle Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare’s classic tale. I’m fairly certain that most people on the planet are familiar with the story of a pair of star crossed lovers separated by their families disdain for each other. The story has been covered, parodied and rethought countless times, so now it’s your turn to rethink the cover for the book.
As far as I can tell, the cover has never really been done well. Take a look at these results from Amazon and you’ll see what I mean, scary stuff. So here’s your challenge. Create a cover for the book that feels new and exciting, that would grab people’s attention and make them want to buy the book. Here’s the catch though, you only have two weeks to complete the contest.
Here’s where the special part comes in. As per our usual $100 Amazon gift card, you’ll also get the super rad Nooka Zub Zen-V in black. Since the holidays are coming up soon I thought providing a little something extra might be rad, either an early present for yourself or someone you love.
RULES
• Please save your images as JPGs no larger than 800px wide at 72 DPI/RGB mode, there’s no height restrictions (within reason). Feel free to play with the dimensions and have fun with what you make. Making a front and back cover with certainly help your chances, but is not required.
• Label your files “Firstname-Lastname-Romeo-Juliet-Cover.jpg”
• Send all entries to contest@thefoxisblack.com with the subject “Re-Covered Books: Romeo and Juliet“. Cut and paste what I wrote there, it’s super easy and it helps me keep track of your entry.
• All entries are due Monday, December 12, 2011 by Midnight, PST.
If there are any other questions feel free to leave them in the comments. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with and be sure to tell your friends/classmates/pets to participate. Good luck and have fun!
Comments
If you've got something to say, keep it positive.Ug, no kidding on those Amazon results. Pretty ugly stuff there!
Can we submit more than one entry?
@Hazel – Yes, submit as many as you like.
I think the deadline’s wrong – the 12th is a Monday.
That watch is a beauty!
Margaret Park’s cover is just wonderfully clever. Love it!
@simon i’m blushing. thanks! :)
I like Jeff Johnson’s the best because it actually makes me want to read the story again.. Great work!
I love what Jeff Johnson did with the ampersand…very clever!
I didn’t think there were guns in the original play? I could be wrong though.
Jeff Johnson’s poster with the ampersand as part of the words is brilliant! Also, love the color scheme!
I adore Margaret Park’s! It tells you so much about the story without ruining the end (even though we all know how it ends, it’s nice if there’s the illusion of surprise). That’s the one I’d pick up!
this is an amazing idea, cool contest.
I am most intrigued by Chris Veil’s and Greg Siegals. They are representative of the story, and aren’t trying to be oh-so-cute. Siegal’s color choices are sublime.
I like Gregory Siegal’s rendition! I like that it doesn’t give anything about the story away but does contain key elements of the play. The dark red tone also goes well. I have always associated a shade of red with this amazing play. I also really like the slanted bar code on the back. Something that I dont normally notice on products but it definitely caught my eye. Well Done!!!
Christopher Porter’s is my favourite. Just a beautiful image.
Lots of great entries added now, but I think my favourite might be Tatiana Alisova’s one! Lovely illustration work – very dynamic.
Cameron Steven’s entry frightened me a little.
Yes, Cameron Stevens’s is a little creepy, but I would want to pick it up and read what it’s about. Great entries!
Paul Bartlett: I absolutely love your submission. The concept and the small, nuanced details come together very well. I am always a fan of a fine art sensibility coming through in design.
Tatiana Alisova: Your submission is also wonderful. The illustration of Romeo and Juliet being dwarfed in between the warring families, as well as the textures and choice of typography, merge into a very effective book cover.
Well done all!
Hey, thanks Phillip.
I really love Chase Kunz’s entry! The textures are fantastic and my eyes just travel around the page so easily! Great work everyone!
I dig the uniqueness of Margaret Park’s entry and I’m inspired by Jaclyn Threadgill’s heavily illustrated cover!
Great work to everyone who participated.
Great stuff overall!
Christopher Porter are Tatiana Alisova are my favorites.
Both are intriguing and in keeping with the original story.
I’m over gun imagery in general, but it certainly doesn’t work here. That could work for a re-imagined Baz Lurhman movie poster, but not the original play in book form.
My top three. . really like the illustration style in the first one. “star crossed lovers” as a theme, done correctly, can work well I think.
1.Jaclyn Threadgill
2.Aria Finkelstein
3.Jeremy Hughes
Thanks Marek!
There’s so much good stuff… I particularly like the pieces by Margaret Park, Tatiana Alisova, Thanh Vu, Simon Lalonde Boisvert and Nim Ben-Reuven!
These are amazing! I love, love how inspired some people are. These entries are truly creative and very entertaining to discover.
Just thought I’d mention too that I was very excited about the re-covered The Outsiders because I adore that book… It was very moving to see other people let out their interpretation through art.
Thanks for these Bobby (TFIB)!
Wow. The creativity here is extraordinary. I absolutely love the colors and layout of Chris Viel’s cover. The abstract nature of Blake Rambo’s cover is also quite an eye-catcher, not to mention a great interpretation of the duo’s romance.
Thanks Nick!
I love Agne Matulionyte’s.
Great entries. Modern looks. This would have been a great one too, even more contemporary: http://piccsy.com/2011/12/hello-g88s325z/
Threadgill (fav), Siegal, and Bartlett (and, I’ll even give the shout to Hogg), for book jackets to a dusty old classic take would make me pick it up again (and, probably raise the eyebrow of a commuting on-looker, as well).
Margaret …WOW! Just love this!
could you add personal links to the entries in the future, some of these are really awesome.
Thanks for the mentions! :)
Francisco Hernandez and Oscar Socorro; beautiful work.
Alberto Reginato; Kudos on the Radiohead quote :)
Funny how I always used to visit this website for the wallpapers. This post blew me away today. Thanks for being so inspirational.