Book Cover Progress

So my lecturer said that the most interesting sketches were the ones that had Tomoe's hair showing action scenes in a double exposure style. I also wanted a design that showed her as a samurai very obviously.

I went with this sketch but decided to tweak it so that her hair would be flowing in the wind:



So I set to work on sketching in Photoshop and Paint Tool Sai (a Japanese program similar to Photoshop that can process .psd files) ((the only real difference is that Sai has line stabilisation for my Wacom tablet pen))

First I set my guides for the spine and flaps:


Then I began sketching her hair and testing the double exposure look with it:

Then I sketched a face and began shading:







Using this woman dressed as Tomoe as a reference for the armour, as well as depictions of samurai and Japanese women from the Kamakura period (1100s and early 1200s):

I began sketching her armour and colour coded the sketch to differentiate between each layer:

After working on the line art I applied patterns to each component of the armour using the Transform tool (distort/perspective):

I had planned to make the woodblock action scene that would be double exposed in her hair myself and did a whole watercolour action scene:

I added grain as a Soft Light layer over it.

However I didn't like the little amount of detail and action when I set is as her hair. So I hope to come back to that. 

As for now I used an actual woodblock print depicting Tomoe. My Photoshop on the laptop I was using wasn't completely functional with the Text tool so I haven't been able to put in my text yet ): Here are my options so far (I'm having trouble parting with the plain black hair!!!) With options for her plain-faced and with the traditional white powder and red lipstick of the time:

Tell me what you think! 

EDIT:

Arriving in class to a computer with Photoshop that can do fonts I set to work on my fonts:

(Fonts from daft.com: Dry Brush and Gloss and Bloom)

I decided to do a double exposure here too:

I tried the watercolour background I painted:

As a very transparent background for the whole thing, and pumped up the opacity on the flaps for a pop of colour when the book is opened:

And here is an idea of what t might look like on a book (done in Photoshop):

I really like this so far! Any feedback?

Historical Book Cover Sketches

Hello again!

So our next assignment is to create a book cover (20×25cm) to show a unique perspective of a historic event.

So... I got to thinking on what historic event interested me. I've recently been interested in the history of Japan and its art. I thought of these periods/places/people:

-samurais/Shogunate
-emperors
-Kyoto
-Edo period
-feudal Japan
-Kabuki theatre

I wanted a more specific event but I didn't want to depict the same old thing. I needed a fresh take. And then I stumbled upon the story of Tomoe Gozen, a female Samurai who was instrumental in the Genpei war.

From Wikipedia:

Tomoe Gozen (巴 御前l c. 1157 – 1247) was a late twelfth-century female samurai warrior (onna-bugeisha), known for her bravery and strength. She fought with Minamoto no Yoshinaka in the Genpei War and was a part of the conflict that led to the first bakufu government in Japan.


"Tomoe was especially beautiful, with white skin, long hair, and charming features. She was also a remarkably strong archer, and as a swordswoman she was a warrior worth a thousand, ready to confront a demon or a god, mounted or on foot. She handled unbroken horses with superb skill; she rode unscathed down perilous descents. Whenever a battle was imminent, Yoshinaka sent her out as his first captain, equipped with strong armor, an oversized sword, and a mighty bow; and she performed more deeds of valor than any of his other warriors."
— The Tale of the Heike

At the Battle of Awazu in 1184, she is known for beheading Honda no Moroshige of Musashi. She is also known for having killed Uchida Ieyoshi and for escaping capture by Hatakeyama Shigetada.

Here are some historical depictions of Tomoe:

And so I began thinking visually about the book cover. I've always been a fan of traditional Japanese woodblock printing (ukiyo-e) but had never had the opportunity to do a design/project in this style. Is this my chance?

Here are some examples of the artform:

These prints show motifs of: decadent & decorative styles, clouds, scenery, curlicues etc.

Here's my spiderweb/ thought map for brainstorming ideas for the book cover:

And here are my resulting 20 sketches:

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Please leave comments and feedback! Let's see where this goes!