Stepping into a bookshop can often feel akin to entering a gallery, with all manner of past and present graphic design trends on display. Book covers can range from the functional to the beautiful – and these new designs from Dulux Heritage certainly fit into the latter camp.
Dulux has reimagined 12 timeless literary classics with hand painted covers, pairing each novel with a hue from the Heritage range's 112 colours, chosen by Dulux's creative director. (For more creative inspiration, check out our colour theory guide).
"To celebrate our Dulux Heritage range," the brand announces on its website, "we’ve created an entirely new way of choosing colour. Hand-picking 12 classic novels to bring to life by pairing them with Heritage hues that evoke the same mood. Want to experience the allure of Dracula or the comforting warmth of Jane Austen? Dulux Heritage has the perfect pairing for you. Explore this new way of selecting colour through our range of classic novels."
The campaign, created with Ogilvy UK, sees the likes of Little Women, Dracula, Frankenstein and Nineteen Eighty-Four (which already boasts some other incredible cover designs) reinterpreted in various Dulux hues.
"By simply equating the feelings and images a classic book paints in our minds to the beautiful colours of the Dulux Heritage range, we were able to tap into something far richer," shares Ogilvy's chief executive creative director. Using a colour specialist, behavioural science, and turbocharging it through illustration, photography, and design, we were able to find a dramatic new visual language and creative experience and a whole new means of bringing to life the feeling of colour.”
We've seen plenty of stunning book covers over the years. But with minimalism arguably no longer in vogue, is it time to stop being a book cover design snob?
