Yeah, great article—and as always—engaging cover art from Penguin. Good background info on the whole process these books went through. The deadlines, the mechanicals, illustrators—all coming together to create covers that drew you in. Things always sound better in retrospect—even when it was a nightmare. I am sure at the time it was a stressful deal to create these covers… I remember seeing my dad slaving at posters and covers when I was a kid. Slicing and dicing, folding, shooting, typesetting, coloring, sketching, silkscreening…
Now we shamelessly sit at our fancy G5’s and crank out a dozen in a few. But you know, it’s still hard and it’s just another tool set. You have more control and resource to create something truly dynamic these days. So when it’s halfhearted, there is little excuse for us… These Penguin guys were like soldiers. They were hit form all angles of disadvantage—yet they pulled through and developed what defined an era. Truly inspired and impassioned people. Bravo.
This cover is bold, memorable and almost comic like. No wonder it become such an iconic treatment. It’s amazing that such a small thing like this “cog eye” speaks conceptual and literal volumes to it’s end.
Hermit and Lennon are great. Lennon for the lack of type on the cover and Hermit for the visual pun… The O’Brien series are just silly.
dang! i never thought i could see this cover again. the movie(should watch it) was great, i heard this was band in the english country.
the cover looks great. the color combi is inviting. the color reminds me of the bright colors with black outline from kandisnky paintings(if i spelled it ryt…lol) i dig it.
It’s interesting, and I knew it was a cover for Clockwork before I read the title or the author…
But, yeah, it’s not a powerful cover. It feels like the 70’s. It’s hard for design to NOT be indicative of their era, or decade, but it’s nice to see vintage covers that transcend time… not too sure this one does.
The CR blog is presenting an “exclusive extract” from Penguin By Designers in the form of a transcript of a talk given by former Penguin AD David Pelham.
I especially enjoyed the Clockwork-Orange-at-3am and Cropping-Henri-Cartier-Bresson anecdotes.
— Ben Pieratt, 2007-05-28 09:50:00
Where Cartier-Bresson is mentioned, the cover by Matisse for ‘The Decisive Moment’ from 1952 comes to mind.
Sorry for distraction..
— priit, 2007-05-28 10:04:00
Great stuff!
Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov
Billy Liar
Creativity in Industry
... and the Cartier-Bresson anecdote were the highlights.
— David Drummond, 2007-05-28 10:47:00
Anyone going to the BEA BTW?
Yeah, great article—and as always—engaging cover art from Penguin. Good background info on the whole process these books went through. The deadlines, the mechanicals, illustrators—all coming together to create covers that drew you in. Things always sound better in retrospect—even when it was a nightmare. I am sure at the time it was a stressful deal to create these covers… I remember seeing my dad slaving at posters and covers when I was a kid. Slicing and dicing, folding, shooting, typesetting, coloring, sketching, silkscreening…
Now we shamelessly sit at our fancy G5’s and crank out a dozen in a few. But you know, it’s still hard and it’s just another tool set. You have more control and resource to create something truly dynamic these days. So when it’s halfhearted, there is little excuse for us… These Penguin guys were like soldiers. They were hit form all angles of disadvantage—yet they pulled through and developed what defined an era. Truly inspired and impassioned people. Bravo.
This cover is bold, memorable and almost comic like. No wonder it become such an iconic treatment. It’s amazing that such a small thing like this “cog eye” speaks conceptual and literal volumes to it’s end.
Hermit and Lennon are great. Lennon for the lack of type on the cover and Hermit for the visual pun… The O’Brien series are just silly.
— Ian B. Shimkoviak, 2007-05-28 11:21:00
dang! i never thought i could see this cover again. the movie(should watch it) was great, i heard this was band in the english country.
the cover looks great. the color combi is inviting. the color reminds me of the bright colors with black outline from kandisnky paintings(if i spelled it ryt…lol) i dig it.
— ongoy, 2007-05-28 18:17:00
pardon me its not kandinsky, it was pete modrian..sorry i was thinking about lines then… dang!
— ongoy, 2007-05-28 18:40:00
The cover was created as a tie-in for the notorious movie version by Stanley Kubrick.
What makes it work for me is Alex’s single eye; it both refers to his one long-lashed eye and a machine gear (as in the “clockwork” of the title).
— Terry Bigham, 2007-05-29 02:10:00
interesting to see once, perhaps, but it’s not one I would come back to. the green and blue ruin it for me, especially.
— gutman, 2007-05-29 08:13:00
It’s interesting, and I knew it was a cover for Clockwork before I read the title or the author…
But, yeah, it’s not a powerful cover. It feels like the 70’s. It’s hard for design to NOT be indicative of their era, or decade, but it’s nice to see vintage covers that transcend time… not too sure this one does.
But it’s nice. The font sux, tho.
— C-Dog, 2007-05-30 14:52:00
back then it was more about the image. The fonts were letter set and you sort of had to deal with it on a deadline…
— Ian B. Shimkoviak, 2007-06-08 16:58:00
BEA yes! Got Stephen Colberts signature!!
— T.Kamir, 2007-06-28 15:38:00