2023 WCMA Excellence In Visual Design Final Nominee (WATIN album package, We Were Here single cover)
WATIN cover painting by Montina Hussey
Photography by Jen Squires Photography
Make up & body paint by Erin Winn
Aysanabee’s debut album WATIN, named after his grandfather, is a stunning journey through time. The stories told throughout feature both their voices and uncover deep rooted family stories. Aysanabee had commissioned the painting that would be the album cover, as well as a digital piece of art for the Nomads single cover. We were then tasked with creating a link between these two very different artistic styles.
We developed the artistic direction for the We Were Here single concept as a bridge between the modern digital generation and the analog and organic nature of Aysanabee’s Grandfather’s generation. We had sample images of the WATIN painting on hand for stroke type reference and photographed Aysanabee as the body paint progressed throughout the day.
When the cover painting was complete it was professionally photographed to ensure the vibrant strokes and colours were properly captured, along with both sides of the canvas. The vinyl package was created to appear as if it would be true painting front and back. We created a pencil sketch of one of the Aysanabee photos that matched the pose of his grandfather to appear on the back cover as a ghost of future generations hidden within the generation of today. The paint strokes and effects were carried throughout the package to further reinforce the narrative of how our varied histories can be a beautiful mess of passion, love, tragedy, and loss.
For the WATIN Deluxe digital album cover we wanted to keep the cover free of type (like the original) to retain focus on the incredible painting. So here we retained the hand painted feel by reducing the art to just the dark strokes, reducing the opacity on the lighter strokes, and replacing the bright colourful background with painted gold to give a rich luxurious contrast. This definitely gave off “deluxe” vibes without the need to add type on the cover. We added a frame with the corner prongs as if the artwork was a gem placed in a jewelry setting and to add a little extra dimension to the piece.
