I’D LIKE AN EMPIRE.
DATE — SUMMER 2023
CLIENT — RUDEFACE
CATEGORY — COVER ART
The Project.
THE SPECIFICATION
“I’D LIKE AN EMPIRE” is the fourth single from Fife based grunge band RUDEFACE. Being close friends with the band and having worked with them before I was asked to create a cover for this release. We have had ongoing conversations about transitioning much of the visuals surrounding the band to a rubber-hose cartoon style.
We all found the inversion of soft and bouncy cartoons contrasted with heavy and coarse grunge music to be incredibly cynical and just what would fit the personality of the band.
The Concept.
EMPIRE & RULE
Centring around the subject of empire, rule and wealth - the single vilifies the all encompassing authority of powerful institutions up and down society. It is this brutal rule I wanted to encapsulate in this design.
I firstly wanted to create a ruler that embodied all the aspects of rule that called out to both the band and myself.
God-King Imperator the Rude.
ROYALTY
I wanted to create the quintessential ruler. Adorned with regal garb coloured with the most royal of colours: crimson and purple.
Purple has been associated with royalty since ancient times, so much so that in the times of the Roman republic it was considered taboo for senators to don it - they were fearful of the tyranny that one man could wield as sole ruler.
The Royal Crown.
CROWN DESIGN
While not based on any royal crown in particular, I found myself looking at the British crown a lot for reference while designing this. One motif in particular that makes it from the British royal lineage to this design is the Maltese cross. I wanted to include this as it is seen across many many lineages of symbolism from religious orders of knights to modern day organisations (such as St. John’s).
CROWN STRUCTURE
I always attempt to find geometrical means of constructing designs, nature always presents the most efficient and mathematically beautiful ways of creating - so there is no better inspiration.
In the following image you can see the crown alongside what is called a Phi scale, this is a scale that divides it’s length by the Golden Ratio.
Unlike other geometrical constructions I have attempted, I deliberately kept this one loose. The entire artwork is carried out in the Rubber Hose cartoon style and as such it was crucial to me to keep every element loose and bouncy; like a rubber hose.
Inverting this scale will give the lower horizontal division.
Nesting a Phi scale inside of a division already made by one will net another harmonious division with the whole as it has been done to the same proportion.
Here you can see all major Phi divisions along both the horizontal and vertical.
DIAMOND
The diamond in the crown also uses geometrical construction, this time predicated on an 8 pointed star to give divisions and diagonal lines of construction.
This seems quite arbitrary at first but if you take the time to look at Gothic Architecture, or the British crown you will notice that both of these things too predicate themselves on 8. Even in Edinburgh at the height of the ceiling inside St. Gile’s cathedral you will see an 8 pointed star.
Here you can see which intersections give the basic frame of the diamond.
This is the completed diamond with lines to suggest faces.
Enabling x-ray mode in illustrator allows you to see where these face lines have been drawn from; which origin points or intersections of lines give new points with which to draw lines.
ROYAL GARB
God-King Imperator the Rude required clothing that matched the high status he possesses. As such I made sure that the primary piece of clothing, his cloak, was in a deep purple. This harkens back to the Imperators of Rome and from royal dynasties that stretch back as far as history does.
The crimson of his shirt is also a colour long associated with royalty and great status. Even the button holes on his cape are stitched with gold to show the level of finery this tyrant posseses.
Re-use of the Maltese cross that is seen on his crown creates a more codified lineage of symbolism that is ever prevalent with ancient institutions such as royalty.
The Royal Sceptre.
SCEPTRE STYLING
The styling of the sceptre is slightly different to that of the King and his other accoutrements. I took the symbolism of royal sceptres to be the physical embodiment of the rule that a regent holds within their hands. As such, I gave it a shiny and ornate border as compared to the dark one of the figure itself. This was to give it additional shine and polish in the composition, highlighting the theme of the greater design more effectively.
The very top of the sceptre is heavily inspired by The Sovereign’s Orb of the British lineage. In this tradition it symbolises the Christian world, mirroring the title that the British regent holds: defender of the faith. In this instance the sphere alludes to this world encompassing authority of the ruler - again adorned with a cross - this time the Templar cross.
THRONE
The design of the throne was kept relatively simple compared to much of the ornamentation in the overall design so as not to distract from the figure atop it.
The royal feeling that comes from the design arises from the shining gold ornamentation and crimson coloured cushioning.
CADUCEUS
This is a simplified version of the ancient symbol: The Caduceus. It appears in traditions stretching almost as far back as civilisation itself. The serpent coiled around the staff has become synonymous with wisdom, knowledge and healing. This serpent of wisdom seemed like the perfect symbol for knowledge that powerful figures and entities possess in their hands, wielded like a staff.
SECRET RUDEFACE PANEL
Whilst not actually visible in the final design, I added this secret panel to the throne as a way to build in the essence of the single to the furniture. It is something that may be used again as promotional material or merchandising.
ROYAL LOOT
It was important to display the excess greed of Empire to supplement the tyrannical figure. Borrowing from the money pit of Scrooge McDuck; the piles of riches and other loot amassed at the feet of our regent made the point nicely.
Creating The Scene.
THE SCENE
After developing the regent’s podium and adorning he and it with all the loot and finery of absolute power, it was time to paint a picture with this character.
Here we see our regent atop his throne in a Classic chamber, looking out onto the decadent city beyond. A single monument stretching into the sky acting as an analogy for the singular and wanton ambition and desire surrounding these tyrants.
Laying on top a pile of bodies lays the band members, intending to show the lives spent and stepped over to amass power and influence; often just as ubiquitous as the riches of power.
Here are the band portraits in full. It was important to me to include an inversion of the dead bodies seen in the central artwork. This was to make the overall feeling a little less grim, but to also highlight the new look of the band members (as opposed to photography).
FRAMING
I wanted the border of this cover to feel as if it was created by the same craftsmen that worked on the regent’s throne. As such it had to have the appearance of hardwood and ornate gold engravings that would elevate the level of finery.
The main square would be used for the artwork, the outer ones for the band portraits. The purple sections that are arranged vertically made the ideal place for the title and artist.
This left two vertical spaces for additional ornamentation either side of the main artwork.
Repeating the image of the Caduceus; I thought the snake imagery made for a potent piece of ornamentation here, the implied slyness and cunning that comes with tyranny, and an opportunity to repeat other alchemical symbology. This was all in service of creating an old and established royal lineage, complete with ancient symbols.
All that was left to add was the decadent single title and artist name.
Cover Typography.
AESTHETIC
Since the theme of the album was so medieval in its portrayal of power and royalty I had originally started off in the search of a blackletter typeface with which to title the single. There are a range of these available but in context many of them turned out looking quite cliched.
TITLE TYPE
This felt like a more restrained and Empirical choice (as in empire, not decision making). Like a stepping out of the medieval era of empire, into the more sophisticated and far reaching time of colonialism. The sheen given to the gold again adorns the title in an escapable sense of wealth.
ARTIST TYPE
Following all the previously established conventions I adorned “RUDEFACE” in the same regal coat as the album title, inverting the fill-stroke dynamic to aid the eye’s travel vertically down the artwork. First landing on the bright and full title, then travelling through the artwork to the indigo adorned artist name.
