brief Cover illustration for an anthology of Black men’s poetry.
“There’s no apostrophe – I want to avoid the indication of possession.”
With those words, author / editor Michael Datcher directed me to remove the apostrophe that would otherwise mark the title of this book.
In the end, the type layout would be completed by another artist, but my PMS metallic gold figures remained. Datcher’s second book, Raising Fences, would go on to be a Today Show reader’s club pick.
The illustration appeared as an insignia on materials for a few promotional appearances as well (a book launch invitation is pictured).
result Being fairly early in my experience, I’ve re-designed this (better) in my head a thousand times. But working directly with the author was incredibly rewarding, and when I look at some of the thumbnail sketches, it brings back a lot of good memories.
