Alexis Wright cover design series

Full description

Background:
To draw attention to three major novels written by Australian indigenous writer Alexis Wright, the launch of her 2023 novel, ‘Praiseworthy’ was conceived to coincide with re-releases of her Miles Franklin award winning ‘Carpentaria’ (2007) and ASAL award winning, ‘The Swan Book’ (2014). A series of three designs was required primarily to draw attention to the new novel, whilst reenvisaging the past novels as counterparts, in hardback and paperback formats. Whilst graphic diversity characterises the form, little is known about the generative strategies of its practitioners.

Contribution:
The ideation of this suite of works pushes the field of post-digital graphic design practice by synergising analogue inquiry with digital tool use in graphic design ideation, (Stiny, 2015, Grigg, 2018, 2020, 2022). A sequence of unfaltering, hand-generated, monochrome ink marks were tested for their capacity to evoke the language that Wright uses to express outrage against oppression and disadvantage of Australia’s First Nations people, the novels’ Australian landscape settings, and identify Australian literature uniquely within global publishing. Related by method, each mark signifies a feature distinct to each book.

Significance:
The research findings support the concept that a sustained, critical, non-digital material enquiry is a strategy for invention in contemporary graphic design practice.). Attesting to its value the work submitted:
• satisfied the independent selection processes of acclaimed publishers Giramondo‘s editorial board and novelist Alexis Wright
• is a finalist in the 2023 AGDA awards
• helped progress levels of experimentation in Australian book cover design and publishing practice.
• drew attention to the unique qualities of Australian writing, evidenced by recognition from key literary awards organisations. ‘Praiseworthy’ won the 2023 Qld Literary awards.
• The ‘Carpentaria’ design was purchased and published by Little Brown, UK, in 2023