CD Cover: The Best Budz

This is the CD cover that I did for my friend Maxwell Jensen's band called "The Best Budz". The first picture is the pan-flit and top cover that would be in the CD case. The main cover is the one to the right with the title on it. I made the letters for the title which is something i might change later on. It fits me as a person but I'm not sure if it was the best choice in reflecting the band. It seems slightly too edgy for their earthy relaxed happy style. And the image in the background is a picture of a flower that I took and edited primarily using the Curves effect tool on Photoshop. Unlike with the letters I am very happy with the backgrounds end result. One of the ways they explained what they were looking for was Lava lamp-ish which I believe is close to that. The middle section of the first image I am very happy with. The way i did it was with a picture of a hand holding a flower that i altered with the Curves tool again. Then I made multiple copies of it and combined them while messing with the opacity levels and the placement of the pictures. The third one to the far left is a picture that I took of leaves obviously. I liked this ine because they did describe themselves as earthy which is why I used this one and i felt it needed to have a green aspect to it as well because of the description. To be able to represent them as they want. I feel the composition of it is good with the rule of thirds, repetition and color. I made the letters for all of the CD cover. Thew last image at the bottom is the back page. It is the same picture as the second in the middle because I felt it needed something to pull it together in some matter. It is also changed with curves but different than the others. If I could change this I would switch this one with the one in the middle of the first image. Because generally CD covers have song titles on the back.

SELF PORTRAIT-ish 

This piece of artwork that I did has a lot of hidden meaning and symbolism within it. I would agree that it doesn't necessarily "look" like me; however, with the discolored face and the awkward angle, who would resemble themselves...? This idea started to emerge from my mind when I was getting my hair done last. If you don't already know, I dye my hair very different colors very often. From brown, brown with highlights and black underneath, light brown, bleached blonde, black, dark brown with blonde streaks in front, and then lastly red. Mind you this in in the span of two and a half years. When I get my hair done they sit you in a chair to wash the chemicals out and the chair keeps your head aimed high up but your body normal. While people were walking by I imagined what I must possibly look like at such of an odd angle as this. And while I was looking up all I had to look at were these lights on the ceiling. The lights looked like small spotlights. So from that I imagined what if all those mini spotlights turned on me, then how unusual would I look? That is the reasoning for the position, surroundings and intensified lighting. The many colors of hair is because of the many times i have dyed my hair. I figured out that the reason I dye my hair so often is because when I look into the mirror I like to not look like myself. I like to not recognize the person in the mirror. This is because of my lack of self confidence. That is also the reasoning for the slicing of the art work. I always examine myself and take myself apart to the point where I'm left in pieces. Shambles perhaps. This is almost a full body self portrait other than my feet being missing. Which then meets that requirement. The other requirement was to make sure there was figure ground relationship which this is lacking. The chair and colors of hair do make part of surroundings; however, I feel as though that aspect could have been accomplished more efficiently. This is a mixture of chalk and oil pastel and also charcoal. Over all I feel as though I am happy with the results.