Been working here and there on a book (re-covered) project for the DoeDeMee cover project for illiteracy. Below are some of my sketches rendered as I read through my book choice, The Scarlet Letter.
As of a few nights ago, I had my poster looking like so:
... But something was missing. I picked this novel for the sake of the story's message on identity. Upon looking at other covers throughout time, there were a couple recurrent themes: Hester & Child (Pearl) and the big red "A". These characters actually become what the "A" symbolizes and I wanted convey with the cover. I think I did this rather successfully transforming these two characters into an "A".
However, there's another character that's typically ignored for cover art, and I really wanted him to have at least a subliminal presence, because without him, there would be no Pearl and thusly no evidence for the need of that adulteress mark: Reverend Dimmsdale. He too was afflicted and writhing in guilt. In the end of the novel, he tears oven his shirt to reveal (allegedly) a wound/scar of an "A" etched into his chest, covering where his heart lies.
The original cover has implied fleshiness, but I really wanted Dimmsdale's chest:
Quiet, but illustrative, I even managed to slip in a little nipple!
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