Design Rationale

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Key concepts: Based on in-depth research, I found that most of the Baskerville design works follow the old fashioned direction. However, I also don’t want to create something too traditional or predictable, or show that Baskerville is ‘old’. I think the essence of baskerville is elegant, but at the same time it is very confident, flexible, and timeless. Even today, baskerville is still widely appreciated and used, which proves that its excellence can stand the test of time. Therefore, baskerville has eternal vitality.

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Layout: I believe baskerville is a treasure left by John baskerville for posterity. In the cover design, I placed the lowercase 'g' in the center of the whole picture and designed the circle of 'g' into a box that seems to contain pearls. It was filled with pearls made of Q, O and 0. The orange-yellow background contrasts sharply with the red Baskerville. It looks like that each letter of 'BASKERVILLE' is scattered among gems, shining bright red  with the sunlight. Also, I implemented a similar concept on the back cover. Pearls composed of letters are scattered from the upper right corner, which is simulating the passing of time. ‘The Treasure of Time’ just fell into a box with the letter 'V'. Regarding the layout of the entire book, you can see the combination of modern and classic to show the infinite possibilities of baskerville.

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Colour: For my palette, I try to represent Baskerville’s elegance, vitality and unlimited possibilities. On the one hand, my main colors are yellow, orange and red with high saturation. Every society associates yellow with the brilliance and warmth of the sun. The bright, highly saturated yellow is equally cheerful and energetic. Where orange is used to represent, the theme of vitality is the main connection. Red is one of the most positive colors in symbolism. Its connection with vitality and life itself. On the other hand, in order to show the elegant essence of baskerville, I used some feminine colors, such as deep red and dusty pink. Dusty pink is regarded as soft, subtle and romantic. Deeper red can be more mature, gorgeous and elegant. In visual psychology, red is an advanced hue that looks "heavier" than other colors, which is in line with the beautiful personality of elegant Baskerville. . In addition, in order to express the dual character of baskerville's vitality and elegance, most of my pages are designed with mixed colors backgrounds. The font colors are mostly contrasting. I mixed and juxtaposed multiple colors to reflect the confidence of Baskerville. In this specimen book, you can see the distinctive characteristics of Baskerville.