Overview
Cosmo Sheldrake's music is inspired by nature, and the vast world around us. While remaining difficult to categorize, it is argued that his music echoes folktronica, baroque pop, and electronic indie elements. He blends a large variety of instruments with natural sounds and field recordings (such as birdsong, myco-sonification, and whale/ insect sounds) to create distinct layered compositions.
Challenge
In one of my classes, I was tasked with redesigning a vinyl in the style of the Art Nouveau movement. I wanted to challenge myself by choosing a slightly more niche artist, whose music I find myself always coming back to.
Solution
Design a new vinyl sleeve (both front and back) and utilize key motifs to convey correlation to the movement, as opposed to directly copying famous works from that time.
Project Specs:
Timeline:
5 weeks
Tools:
Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Google Suite
Roles:
Researcher, Ideation/ Concept Curation, Art Director, Illustrator, Editor
Audience/ Demographic
Overall, it is difficult to limit Sheldrake's listening base to just one demographic, as the fan base itself is very diverse. However, the largest listening bases for his music exist within Seattle, Denver, Dallas, and London. It can also be assumed that many of them have an interest in the natural world, indie music, or the implementation of experimental sounds.
Brainstorming
In the ideating phase, I researched the movement extensively, and let myself drown in the music I was supposedly embodying in this vinyl (I listened to this album, and only this album throughout the project's duration). During my time researching, I stumbled across the fact that several songs in this album had been written for Flora Scott Wallace, Cosmo Sheldrake's wife.
Process
In my first iterations, I wanted to take very different approaches, with some focusing on the darker musical aspects, others the more literal aspects, and the final, a line art depiction of Flora in an Art Nouveau style. After realizing she is also a talented multimedia artist and musician, I felt that I simply had to make that an emphasis for this recreation. I also wanted to pay homage to her, as she was the initial creator of the vinyl's featured artwork.
Flora Scott Wallace
This project was also my first time illustrating digitally, as well as my first time in years drawing a human. I was inspired by the way so many women were beautifully portrayed in harmony with nature during the Art Nouveau movement. I wanted to try and create that same ambience with Flora by adding floral detailing and letting the line art speak for itself. An iconic green color palette and typography reminiscent of the movement also seemed like the perfect fit for the tone being crafted.
Listen to Eye To The Ear:
