Underground

The story of a troubled romance between two members of the underground Lithuanian resistance movement in mid-1940s. Once again, Ben Gibson did a perfect job illustrating my concept.

Thomas Allen Publishers

Violence Against Women

A very challenging design. I wanted to convey how horrible domestic abuse is, while keeping the context of it being a part of some people’s day to day existence.

UTP Higher Eduction

What the Buddha Never Taught

Tim Ward’s account of  his time as a novice at a Buddhist monastery deep in the jungle of Thailand. The type was mocked up using Edo SZ, and then recreated in Adobe Illustrator using various brushes to give it a more hand-lettered look.

Illustration: HiDesign Graphics / iStockphoto
Thomas Allen Publishers

A Crowded Marriage

I had the privilege of working with illustrator and Art Director Ben Gibson on this project. I’d put together the basic concept using stock illustrations, and he executed it brilliantly.

Illustration: Ben Gibson
Sourcebooks

The Last Shot

This was my first book for Thomas Allen Publishers. A collection of short stories that had a central theme of last chances. The author was showing around the comps at a dinner party for friends, and apparently Michael Ondaatje was very enthusiastic about this matchbox concept.

Selected for inclusion in Quill and Quire‘s 2009′s Designer’s Choice Cover of the Year.

Thomas Allen Publishers

Transnationalism

The border between Canada and the United States doesn’t separate the shared history of the two countries…

McGill Queen’s University Press

How to Be A Cowboy

As soon as I got the assignment for this one, I got a flash of Wile E. Coyote in the desert, poring over his various blueprints and diagrams with schemes to get the Road Runner. This was the first idea I executed, and the publisher liked it, but we continued down many different paths for a while before returning to this one. It’s almost exactly like the first comp I presented. Sometimes that’s the way it goes.

Gibbs Smith Publisher

This Cake Is For The Party

Working closely with author Sarah Selecky on this project for Thomas Allen Publisher was a rare treat (it’s not often that the designer works directly with the author). The title sits on the plate, and the crumbs, fork and tablecloth all work together to convey ‘cake’ without actually showing a cake.

Thomas Allen Publishers

The Master of Happy Endings

What could the link be between a ‘Happy Ending’ and a man jumping out of the building. That’s exactly what I hope someone glancing at this cover will wonder, and that curiosity will lead them to pick up the book. The photo in the background is printed black overlaid on silver.

Thomas Allen Publishers

The Extinction Club

The novel’s protagonist is a stamp collector, and the story has a thread about endangered and extinct species. I thought that a nod to the famous stamp with the upside down bi-plane would get across both ideas, with the upside down Cougar representing ‘extinction’. The stamp illustration is assembled from various stock photo and custom pieces, and was embossed on the final jacket.

Penguin Canada
Art Director: Lisa Jager

Wittgenstein And The Practice of Philosophy

I really wanted to use an unusual photo of Wittgenstein for this cover. With much detective work and help from The British Wittgenstein Society and the Wittgenstein Archive, I was able to find these evocative photo-booth style images. The multiple images spoke to me of Wittgenstein’s interest in language and philosophy.

Broadview Press
Photo: The Wittgenstein Archive