ritual de lo habitual

Music is what drives me, so it is not surprising that when it comes these design analysis posts that I am drawn to look at images involved with some of my favorite music. This image comes from the cover of Jane's Addiction's 1991 album Ritual do lo Habitual. Formed in Los Angeles in the mid 80's and influenced by such artists as The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and David Bowie, Jane's Addiction became one of the pioneering artists of the 90's alternative rock explosion. The vivid cover for this groundbreaking album was hand-made by Perry Farrel, leader of the band, and created from plaster and found objects. It illustrates the lyrical content of the album's peak tune, Three Days, which details the three days Perry Ferral, his girlfriend, and a dearly departed friend of his named Xiola Bleu spent in a haze of drugs and sex. Of course the song puts it much more eloquently- recounting the events in much more poetic terms, dealing with death, rebirth, and other such metaphysical topics.

Following the rule of thirds quite well, the cover's main focal point is the three lovers in the center of the image. The alignment is very symmetrical, with the found images within the cover stacked on top of each other, almost like columns. The stark white sculptures in the middle nicely contrasted to the very rustic tones of the rest of the cover, suggesting their saint-like or heavenly state of being, as alluded by the bright orange/gold halos as well. The repetition of red also works very well for the image. The rose in one of the sculptures mouth, the sheet, and the framing of the picture all look wonderful, however I'm not sure if the rose and red sheet have any significance other than to look good and tie the colors together. The only things about this image that I am not particularly fond of are the two uses of text. The name of the album is small, out of the way, and in a delicate font- very meek and unnoticeable. The other misused text is that of the band's name. The text is alright- the blue looks good, but the font itself is rather plain, but the placement is what bothers me. I feel like it should be placed above the golden halos on the figures. Placed at the bottom, it feels a little too heavy with the deep red and other dark colors going on. Were it at the top, it would demand more attention and balance the piece out a little more.