Au Courant Magazine
Pennsylvania College of Technology, Package Design, Spring 2024
Abstract
A mock Au Courant magazine featuring an article called The Myth of Recycling that is informing the reader about the myths of us thinking we are doing good by recycling, but in reality it tells us what actually happens with our recyclable materials with majority of our used plastic ending up in our landfills.
Deliverables
Conceptual Cover
Opening Feature Article Spread
Two Additional Feature Article Spreads
Liquor Ad for Blackwater Distilling
PROCESS WORK
Thumbnails & Mind Maps:
In the beginning stages of this project we were tasked to do conceptual thumbnails and mind maps to the two main feature articles, which are Mind Altering Therapies or The Myth of Recycling. Once the thumbnails were presented for critique, the feature article was chosen from the best conceptual idea.
Roughs:
Out of my thumbnails, the strongest conceptual idea that was chosen out of the sketches above was for the feature article for The Myths of Recycling that is showing a recycling sticker being peeled off the trash can revealing a trash symbol to represent the idea of what we, the recycler, thinks when we recycle it is being turned into something new, but in reality it is being sent to landfills. The roughs consists of only the conceptual cover and the the image for the opening spread.
Comps:
Based off of the feedback given during critique, the colors felt too cold, the name of the magazine cannot be curved due to magazine names on all editions are consistently placed and would not be altered on each edition, the type could feel more dynamic and more interesting to look at, and to take away the lid of the trash can and add a full pile of trash mixed with recyclable material. Below is the corrections from the rough above that was made for proofed comp critique.
Graded Final:
The critique given was to change the color of the sticker to make it pop out more, make the colors used more saturated in certain areas, work with typography on cover, fix technical elements like pull quote placements and organizing text, move the trash can down to fix tension points of the trash overlapping the text on the front cover, and finishing the side bar found on the last spread and the ad for the last page of the magazine.
Edits made during Summer Break:
After final critique and attending a portfolio review, the feedback that was given was to increase the font size of the sidebar, reorganize text so text is aligned with other text boxes on the last page of the last spread, decrease the size of the edition and issue on the front cover, make the pile of trash a solid color with green detailing on top to add texture to the trash that will make the recyclable material pop out to help understand the concept of the magazine more, make the other articles on the front cover smaller so it does not feel cramped in the space, make the name of the article green to integrate the green into the composition more, and make the second spread’s illustration not have a opacity difference but just a value difference. Below are the edits made from the following feedback.
Final
With my portfolio review that I had for my portfolio design class, I received the following feedback for the edits made for the summer break edited version: to change the color of the background of the front cover to something other than baby blue, change the color of the recyclable materials in the trash so they pop out more from the dark blue trash piles, take away the conveyor belt of the second spread illustration, add more detail to the trash pile, and move the text on the liquor add up towards the top left hand corner. Below is the final project from all the process that is stated and shown above.
