Chen, and a flower | Photobook Cover
This photobook cover is a project for CHEN Bar, a fan club I have been working with for 2 years.
Chen is the member of EXO and his first mini album “April, and a Flower” will be released on April 1st.
CHEN Bar would like have a cover with similar color palette and the theme of April and flower as the official teaser images.
這個是為 CHEN Bar 的週邊 Photobook 設計的封面。
Chen 是 EXO 的成員，而他的第一張 Solo 專輯 “April, and a Flower” 將於 4 月 1 號發行。
CHEN Bar 希望用和官方預告照片相似的綠色米色色系和 “四月和花” 的概念去設計這一個封面。
Concept & Design
The biggest challenge of this project is the limited resources and information. When I first started designing the cover, I only have two images from the official account. The song list and photos released after I have finished design from the sketches.
Although we have limited resources, I still got inspiration from them. Inspired by the name and teaser images of the album, I decided to create the cover with watercolor and pencil drawing style. In addition, I would like to keep the composition clean and simple to match the official concept. In order to archive this goal, I limited the use of color and images; therefore, I picked the first alphabet “C” from Chen to be the main image instead of photos.
The first requirement is using the similar green-beige color palette as the official image. I used the beige color as the background color to express a clean and warm feeling. Adapting the color palette from the image, I added a tiny touch of sky blue to balance out the green and beige. It also piped up the alphabet “C” from the background.
The second requirement is applying the concept of “April and flower.” April is a month of stepping into spring. Flowers starts to bloom in this month. I did some search on seasonal flowers in April and meaning go those flowers. As a result, I picked sweet pea, peonies, lily of the valley and Casa Blanca lily.
有限的資源是這次設計最大的挑戰。我剛開始設計的時候，手上只有兩張官方預告圖。照片和歌單是在初稿已經做好了以後才公開。
即使資源有限，我還是從中得到了靈感。我決定以水彩和鉛筆畫風格去設計這一個封面。另外，我也希望可以保持整個排版的簡潔度，於是我在顏色和圖片的運用上做了些限制。因此我用了鍾大的藝名 Chen 的第一個英文字母 “C” 去做中心元素而不是用照片。
設計的第一個要求是使用和官方預告照片相似的綠色米色色系。 米色的背景帶出一種溫暖簡潔的感覺。我同時也加入了一點點的天藍色去平衡設計中的綠色和米色，同時讓 “C” 能更突出。
第二個要求是利用 “四月和花” 的概念。四月是一個生機勃勃的月份，踏入四月便是繁花逐漸盛開的春季。我在網上做了一些關於花和花語，花期的資料搜尋。最後我決定採用香碗豆、牡丹、鈴蘭和香水百合。
Flowers
Lily Casa Blanca 香水百合
Lily Casa Blanca represents purity, too. And it also means celebration. This phonebook is a celebration for Chen’s 1st mini album.
香水百合也是象徵了純潔，它同時也有著慶祝的意思。這一本 photobook 週邊也是為了慶祝鍾大的第一張 Solo 專輯。
Lily of the Valley 鈴蘭
The shape of lily of the valley is similar as bells. This flower means sweetness and purity. Many brides use it for their bridal bouquet since the flower is said to bring luck in love. It also means “the return of happiness.” Using this flower in the design is a blessing form us to Chen.
鈴蘭花的形狀像一個個小鈴鐺一樣。它們代表了甜美和純潔。很多新娘都會選擇鈴蘭花去做她們的捧花因爲鈴蘭花有著幸福的意思。鈴蘭花也象徵了 “幸福的回歸”。選擇把鈴蘭花用在設計裡也是希望籍此為鍾大送上我們的祝福。
Peonies 牡丹
The florescence of peonies also starts in April. In Chinese culture, peonies are the “king of the flowers.” They represent wealth and riches.
牡丹的花期也是在四月。牡丹素有“百花之王” 之稱，同時也象徵了富貴和吉祥。
Sweet Pea 香碗豆
The message of sweet pea is “You are very special and dear to me.” Chen is very special to everyone who loves and appreciated him. I believe this mini album is very special and dear to Chen and all EXO-L. Also, sweet sea starts to bloom in April.
香碗豆花有一個花語是 “你之於我，特別而珍貴”。對於愛他和欣賞他的人，鍾大是一個特別的存在。我相信這一張專輯之於鍾大和我們都是特別而珍貴的存在。還有，香碗豆花的開花季節是在四月。
