Something very successful you've done here, Gareth, is how you've achieved the impact of a 'full page' illustration while still including the article and title. And without detracting from the importance of the text or marginalising it.
The finger prints are fun, and the off-register colour adds a nice print-like quality. I especially like it in the upper left guitar, where it's simplest.
I think where you let yourself down a tad is that you don't really have any major vs. minor - or other quality A vs. quality B - visual parts.
I hope this analogy will be instructive and not 'bashing,' but it's almost like a heavy-footed animal had been stamping its way around on the page. This isn't necessarily a feeling you'd want to associate with music.
To explain what I mean by the lack of contrasting or different visual qualities, please do this: With your hand or a piece of card, cover up the bottom half of your page - so you see, say, from the second line of text below the big F upward.
Now you have a large area of colour enveloping the right side and a delicate use of colour on the left. You also have lovely line work dominating the left side and in fact taking prominence in our new half-page composition. One has a chance to look at it and enjoy it and its off-register colour - savour it - rather than having your eye dart around the (full) page) trying to decide what to look at.
Then (again, with the bottom half covered) you get a glimpse of another guitar- just a piece of it as it disappears off the half page. Major, minor, contrast, quality A vs. quality B. Does what I'm saying make sense?
But, overall, a great compositional idea. Also the title font harmonises nicely with the line drawings, the large coloured areas work well as they overlap the text and the lovely upper left guitar adroitly guide the viewer to the beginning of the article.
Hope this was helpful!
Comments
The finger prints are fun, and the off-register colour adds a nice print-like quality. I especially like it in the upper left guitar, where it's simplest.
I think where you let yourself down a tad is that you don't really have any major vs. minor - or other quality A vs. quality B - visual parts.
I hope this analogy will be instructive and not 'bashing,' but it's almost like a heavy-footed animal had been stamping its way around on the page. This isn't necessarily a feeling you'd want to associate with music.
To explain what I mean by the lack of contrasting or different visual qualities, please do this: With your hand or a piece of card, cover up the bottom half of your page - so you see, say, from the second line of text below the big F upward.
Now you have a large area of colour enveloping the right side and a delicate use of colour on the left. You also have lovely line work dominating the left side and in fact taking prominence in our new half-page composition. One has a chance to look at it and enjoy it and its off-register colour - savour it - rather than having your eye dart around the (full) page) trying to decide what to look at.
Then (again, with the bottom half covered) you get a glimpse of another guitar- just a piece of it as it disappears off the half page. Major, minor, contrast, quality A vs. quality B. Does what I'm saying make sense?
But, overall, a great compositional idea. Also the title font harmonises nicely with the line drawings, the large coloured areas work well as they overlap the text and the lovely upper left guitar adroitly guide the viewer to the beginning of the article.
Hope this was helpful!