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Jason Gabbert’s inspiration
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Paddy Wacked
| April 07, 2008


Here is a work designed by Richard Ljoenes. This book is, of course, about the Irish American Gangster (view excerpt on Amazon). The image is rather disturbing, but also very effective (the lighting sets a sinister environment). I also enjoy the instant "Irish" read by using the green clovers. The back is just as effective as the front, showing the mug shots of several of the gangsters. A beautifully executed jacket! Hopefully we can get Richard to comment on his process behind this.



Tags:  book cover, book jacket, paddy whacked

Topic: Graphic Design

Creative Dialogue

1 Comments |[ Add Comment ]

Richard Ljoenes
on April 07, 2008

Thanks for the kind words, Jason

Paddy Whacked was a very fun and rewarding project. It's one of my favorite pieces.

The typography was designed to be somewhat reminiscent of an Irish Whiskey label. The image is dark and sinister, but something about the way he's lying there spread out, with the hat and all, strikes me as slightly tragicomic. Combined with the whimsical clovers, this keeps it from becoming too gruesome overall.

The process involved a lot of handiwork such as painting and scratching on top of the design and then scanning it in again.

Being able to use a nice uncoated stock completed the package nicely. The stock is a subtle cream which gives everything a slight warmth. The case underneath is an Irish green with a big fat clover debossed onto the front.

A nice fact about this one was that there was almost no publicity whatsoever, but it hit the New York Times extended bestseller list quickly. I like to think that the design can take some credit for that.

The author was terrific to work with. Being able to work with a Weegee photo was also an honor.


Richard

 

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