In a series of blog posts, I will develop an understanding towards Edward Tuftes five Envisioning Information design principles and how my chosen subject of ‘album project design’ encompasses these principles through efficient design.
When it comes to creating a visual product for music, whether this be an album cover, promotional poster or a music video, the lead artist will consider the correct colours for the project. Since some albums are concept pieces with specific meanings or ideas behind them, the colours will usually be chosen specifically to match this. One example I like to investigate is Jamiroquai’s ‘Travelling Without Moving’ album from 1996. Jay Kay has stated that he uses the term “cars,life and love”(Kay, 1997) when describing the message behind the album. The predominant use of primary colours, black, as well as a hint of secondary colours, creates an easy to view artwork. Tufte uses this theory by stating “Use of the primary colors and black provides maximum differentiation (no four colors differ more)”(Tufte, 1990).
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When diving into the colours of the album, we can begin to pull assumptions based on prior knowledge or natural instinct. An example of this would be green, which has connotations of nature, which could possibly represent ‘Life’ in Jay Kay’s words. However some audiences could conclude that the colour could be referring to the British racing green (the country in which Jay Kay resides). By using Jamiroquai’s logo on top of an embossed yellow rectangle, it is imitating the logo of the car manufacturer ‘Ferrari’ which further reiterates the significance of cars within the project. Another point we can talk about is how the designer has used bold and bright colours for what matters, on top of a dark and less important background. By doing this, it makes the logo of the album more attractive to the consumer and therefore it will resonate with them more.
Tufte, E (1990) Envisioning Information, P. 86
Kay, J (1997) Philadelphia Inquirer Interview
Wikipedia Contributors (2021). Travelling Without Moving. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travelling_Without_Moving [Accessed 10 Oct. 2021].
