Pity Party
Vinyl Sleeve and Fanzine
06
2023
A birthday that went wrong, translated into a record sleeve and a fold-out fanzine that opens into a poster of a crumpled party hat.
Cover design — 2023
Developed during the first year of my Communication Design degree, within the Introduction to Design course, this project responds to a brief to choose a song and translate what it evokes into a vinyl record. I chose Melanie Martinez’s Pity Party, drawing from a personal memory of a birthday celebration that did not unfold as expected, and explored the contrast between a festive appearance and the more vulnerable moment that follows.
The record sleeve portrays the birthday girl as a circus-like figure. Her red nose, party hat and melancholic expression act as a metaphor for performed joy and the fragility behind the celebration. A blue and red colour palette carries this tension across the vinyl package.
The accompanying fanzine uses a sequence of illustrations to show the traces of the party before and after its turning point. When fully unfolded, it becomes a poster of a crumpled birthday hat, transforming an object associated with celebration into a symbol of its ending.
My role
Cover design, illustration and editorial design.
