mandate

The project's challenge was to present abstract emotions like dread and the breaking point into a poster and vinyl set.

Neil Cowley is a pianist and composer based in London. He started his career in classical music before transitioning to jazz and electronic styles. Cowley released a solo album titled "Battery Life," which explores themes of memories, his mother's diary, and the anxiety of uncovering what lies beneath the surface.

CONTEXT

APPROACH

RESULT

I started my process by diving deeper into Neil Cowley's background and Battery Life's themes. Articles, interviews and the artist's blog post about his album helped me understand the thought process behind Battery Life. I also listened to Cowley's music repeatedly and brainstormed different sketches related to memories and anxiety. What stood out to me from my research was the idea of the breaking point when Cowley cracks open the diary, which influenced my graphical direction.

The resulting poster and vinyl use angular shapes to create a sense of danger, like rocks breaking apart. The vibrant blue and orange colour palettes are reminiscent of playing modules from childhood, which fit the album's idea of blurry memories. Partially hidden text corroborates this concept while creating a rhythm using angles and text of different sizes.