“UNIVERSITA” ART BOOK

programs used:

adobe indesign, adobe illustrator, adobe photoshop, kickstarter, imovie, mixam

project type:

entrepreneurial

year completed:

2020

I had been drawing with a more serious focus on the craft for four years when I released my own book. Part of what kept me consistently motivated in working on drawing was the idea of making my own art book as I feel that I would really enjoy working as a publication designer/art book creative director. Throughout my journey in art I was exposed to many scams which was often frustrating but also filled me with determination with the hopes of being able to create an independent creative venture that actually had integrity.

I understood that many artists are sort of jaded or suspicious of opportunities because many artists are aware of exploitation. There is really no reason any artists would just hand over their art to let me try and make a book, so I figured I would have to make my own art book and it would have to be good; and so I took every opportunity I could to do printed media assignments (especially book related ones) and did my best to develop relevant skills.

Throughout my time at Southern Utah University I learned a lot about bookmaking. It involved a lot of stretching in terms of my skillset, trying to face and figure out InDesign and stop relying on the common comfort zone of Photoshop and Illustrator. I was lucky enough to have a professor who made books as art (not art books [you know, not books that contained art but were supposed to be art themselves]) so in one class I had a project that was to handcraft a hardcover book from scratch which influenced my understanding and design process in book creation.

Once I had edited and refined the book enough I printed a first draft through Mixam printing. I used this Zero Edition to create photographs and videos for marketing materials. I had saved a decent amount of money for the project but I had nowhere near enough to mass produce the book. I had planned to launch a Kickstarter for the book that included many stretch goals, one of which being upgrades to the book. I originally wanted the book to wrapped in red synthetic leather or linen and then stamped with metallic black foil, but the foil system requires a custom etched metal plate that increases the starting price and minimum order size. A Kickstarter seemed like a good venture as I had a quality product and could garner support from a community interested in art.

The next step was designing a Kickstarter and social media assets. In the months leading up to my Kickstarter I discovered so many other creators and projects that I supported. I took inspiration in how to write my own campaign from the many great Kickstarters I found.

Kickstarters require an approval and scheduling process to be completed. Unfortunately my Kickstarter launched with very poor timing and under unideal circumstances (the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic in the U.S.). My presence on social media was not enough to pull through and so the Kickstarter failed.

In regards to the failure of the project, I had written this: '“In my last It was difficult but I am already working on another art book and do not plan to give up soon. I suppose if you are going to fail any time then the first try is best. You can check out the full flip through of the book and be sure to keep an eye out for the next book release by Sadhouse Publications.”