Illustrating Gothic Literature "Rebecca"
Personal project focused on developing character design and cover design for literary classics.
The 1938 book "Rebecca" tells the story of a young girl who married an older man, Mr. de Winter, and became the lady of Manderley, his home. When she moved into his house, the young girl had to face the ghost of his deceased wife, Rebecca, who's presence was in every little thing around Manderley.
There isn't much information about the new Mrs. de Winter, but there is a lot of information about Rebecca de Winter, so I decided to put Rebecca at the focus of the drawing, showing her with two different facial expressions in a way that demonstrates how Rebecca is perceived by different people in her life.
On the cover, the new wife stares at Rebecca's picture, her whole posture is one of insecurity, and her face is not visible, since her name was never revealed. In the illustration, she's portrayed as faceless as she is nameless.
The back cover shows the same picture of Rebecca, but this time with the person who knew her best, Mrs. Danvers, who is hostile to the main character from the start, and is portrayed staring at the viewer as if she knows she's being watched, just as she seemed, to the main character, to know the most about the house and the late Mrs. de Winter.
The cover design was inspired by the main character's obsession with Rebecca's signature on every envelope or note in Manderley, using a font that simulates spilled ink.
Ebook and physical book cover application:
