Semiotics is a major part of my job as a graphic designer. I must interpret what people are going to think when seeing a certain image. That is why this article is very important to always keep in mind and refer to. Whatever my design is or whomever I am designing for, my audience and context of the design is very important in how my design is interpreted.
Chip Kidd is a really interesting graphic designer and author. He has designed over 1,000 book covers, and has won the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award in 2007. Chip Kidd says he tries to not be too literal, which I think is a very useful tip for our book cover designs.
John Gall:
"Collage, photography, typography and art are all grist for the mill, yet no matter how varied the medium, the end result is pure Gall"
"Different groups within the publishing company will each have different answers for this question. What an editor thinks is good, Sales might not. And as designers we have a different set of criteria, which must also include everyone else’s criteria. How that gets resolved is always a bit tricky. A really great cover is going to convey the essence of the book in a unique and surprising way that maybe pushes the design envelope a bit. It might even add to and enhance the editorial content of the book. A cover that is seen and respected by other designers is a good thing too, I guess, but the mission is really to allow the book to make a great first impression."
-Gall on what makes a good book cover
"Just shows what an inexact science this is."
Listed above are quotes I found really meaningful or informative from the article/interview with John Gall. From his interview, I took the idea of pushing boundaries. Pushing boundaries catches attention, and that is the goal of a book jacket. I also thought it was important how he describes that different parts of the company, such as sales, are going to want different things, and that you have to either balance out other opinions or go with what you have.
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