Studio Practice: Existing Book Covers

The variation in existing book covers, over 50 years and across multiple countries. It is interesting to see how they vary based on the culture of the country, and how they have become a lot more digitally rendered over the years due to technological advances in aesthetic and production. Orange and black are definitely thematic across the designs, as well as the prominence of depicting the mockingbird itself, and nature (tree, leaves, branches). The typography varies across the spectrum, but tends to stick with a serif, lowercase type, with harper lee in capitals - I find these to be the most successful layout designs, holding great authority.

I also found it interesting and relevant to acknowledge the covers designed for other cultures. The Persian edition has an effective rustic look to its print-like design, which is simplistic yet bold and capturing the sense of destruction within the book. Additionally, the Chinese edition merits great simplicity in a formal and delicate way, representing the delicacy of the children's stories.

To Kill a Mockingbird 1st ed

To Kill a Mockingbird 1st British Edition

To Kill a Mockingbird Folio Society Edition

1. First US edition published in 1960 by J.B. Lippincott Company
2. First British edition, published in 1960 by Heinemann
3. Folio Society Edition (UK), published 1996

To Kill a Mockingbird 50th Anniversary Edition Australia