This is the cd package design and illustration for a heavy metal rock band.

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For this cd cover design I created a geometric symbol logo to represent the band. The band can reuse this emblem on other promotional material such as tshirts, stickers, and maybe even tattoos. I first sketched out a general idea for the logo, I then created it digitally using adobe illustrator, once I had the look I wanted I created a 3D view of it to give some depth, lastly I brought it into Adobe Photoshop to add the stone texture and colors. I overlaid several textures atop the logo to give some tangibility and make it look aged. I also overlaid a golden sepia color tone over the whole thing to help bring it together. Below you can see the traycard design in which I incorporated a photo of the band members with the track list above them and the logo structure in the background.
Below are some images of the design sources before their completion phase.
As you can see I cut the background out and desaturated the colors, I also adjusted the lighting by tinkering with the levels and deepening the dark’s and lights. You also see the black logo before being rendered into it’s 3D state, along with another unused logo design. Hope you enjoyed the insight- check back soon for more design blog posts.

I’m hoping body armor comes back into style- because this girl looks awesome. This style of fashion is both functional and nicely designed. This artist is a heavy metal rock musician from the UK who wanted to convey an image of her self on the cd cover that reflected her musical persona. Every now and then a design project comes along in which the client has a very specific image in mind and it’s up to me to visually replicate that idea. I worked on this design job for over a month. It took longer than I expected but it also turned out better than i expected. The client basically gave me a photo of her face and I came up with the rest of the body and background. I used photoshop to compose this piece out of a collection of photos. It’s not as noticeable now, but the figure pictured above is made up of 5 or 7 different humans, including arms, neck, ears, face, breast, legs, etc.. they’re all body part photos taken from different humans. I felt like a mad scientist. Design-wise these kinds of projects are difficult because you’re asked to combine a bunch of elements and make them look like one cohesive piece. I started by working in grayscale (this helps make all the elements look the same because they’re only black and white) I then tailored all the body parts to fit the correct size and lighting, after this I added color and overlaid textures and filters to make it one happy design.

Hello again readers- check out my latest design for a heavy metal/death metal musician from Spain- that’s right their rocking out over in Espana to. Actually I’m working with a few metal bands from Spain right now- there must be some kind of heavy metal rock renaissance going on over there or something. The name of the band is “Cautiva” and the album title is “Human”- I developed a few different cd cover options for him before he chose this one. He was pretty specific about what he wanted. When it comes to Art directing there’s a right way and a wrong way- luckily working with Cautiva, he new the right way- and he brought out the best in my skills by challenging me and being open to my ideas as well as having some ideas of his own. I came up with the cd cover concept above after pondering the meaning of human suffering and trying to condense it into it’s essence in a creative way. The imagery is morbid and very bloody but also intriguing by inviting the viewer to look closer and observe what actaully is happening in the art. The human hands are protruding from within to shed the battered shell of a human child with a dauntingly insidious face, representing the idea that we’re all human on the inside regardless of the facade we wear, what experiences we’ve been through, etc. We’re all the same at our core- Human. and valuable at that- as humans we have intrinsic value- regardless of how shattered we are- we can’t be robbed of our worth. Example- if you take a twenty dollar bill and crumple it up, step on it, rake it through the mud, spit on it, urinate it on it, etc… I bet that twenty dollar bill is still worth twenty dollars and you can still go out and buy a nice meal with it.
Also above is the traycard art for this cd package design- the humanoid inside the box assumes the fetal position as life sticks more swords into his existence. Below was the first cover design I submitted that was not used- however the client liked the art so much he still wanted to use it- so I used it on the traycard.

This cd cover design is for a Christian Worship group band. The music was in spanish- cd Musica cristiana diseño grafico. I discussed the concept with the client before bringing it into fruition- we went through a few cd cover design concepts before they chose this one. The concept is of the three crosses on cavelry hill where Jesus Christ was crucified along side two theives. The cross is protruding roots into the ground on which it’s planted and the sunrise is peaking from behind it.
This design was for a popular band associated by ICZ- Instituo Canzion. The tribal design element above added an organic effect to the cover that conveyed the music. The client was very happy with the design, I also did the entire 8 panel design, traycard, and disc. I also designed the promotional posters, t-shirts, and more.
Aurora, IL. Naperville, oak brook terrace, oswego, chicago, IL. Illinois. 60505, 60504. Fernando Medina, Fernando Creative. Midwest graphic design, IL graphic designer, Aurora graphic designer.

Reggae ska music isn’t a genre a music you would think is popular in the midwest, however this band is changing that mentality. I did the cd cover design and the entire cd packaging design. This client had specific requests, but sometimes that brings out the best in me, the graphic designer. The cover design above was my first attempt, however they wanted something that reflected reggae roots music a more. I then created the cd cover below, which they loved.

I continued the design theme throughout the rest of the packaging including a t-shirt design.

This is the cd package design for a DJ mixtape (I know it’s a cd and not a tape- but strangely that’s still the terminology used today). Anyway, the artist dj didn’t have any photo’s he wanted incorporated into the design so he asked me to come up with a character that could represent his music. The mix-tape consists of hip hop music, r&b, rap, etc… The beats are actually quite good- I enjoyed them. He had a bunch of text files he gave to incorporate into the design, such as- the track list, production credits, thank you’s, etc. He just gave them to me in a word file, and I placed them into the design. I also added the copyright info and FBI anti-piracy logo, along with the barcode, this all helps in establishing the professionalism the client wanted to portray in his album release. BLee is a very talented DJ and beat maker- I’m sure he’ll be going place real soon- and hopefully he’ll remember who his graphic designer is.

This is a cd cover design for an amazingly talented Christian band based out of Chicago, IL. I created this cd cover design after discussing the concept with the art director (band member). He had a very specific idea in his mind and just needed me to bring it to life- fortunately we achieved the perfect design within the first round of design proofs. The client really wanted the city of Chicago represented in the background and so I designed a fitting cityscape with some dramatic clouds and scattering pigeons. The client also supplied me with a photo of neon signage for me to reference when designing his cd cover.

I created this poster design for a fashion show that took place in Aurora, IL at the Walter Payton Roundhouse Complex in 2006. It’s now 2009 but the design still looks fresh and holds up to today’s design standards. As a graphic designer I enjoyed working on this project especially since the event was showcasing some t-shirt designs I created. I utilized digital software to created this poster design, which is common for fast turn print designs like this one. The event went very well and a good time was had by all. Chicago, IL.

Fernando Creative, located in Aurora, IL, is celebrating over 10 years of award-winning graphic design for some of the most respected businesses and organizations in the Fox Valley area and throughout the world. Catalogs, ads, direct mail, logo & corporate identity, signs and banners, website graphics, photo retouching, art direction, consulting and more. I service clients in the Chicagoland area, including Naperville, Oswego, Montgomery, North Aurora, Yorkville, Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles, Downers Grove, Lisle, Joliet, Plainfield, etc. As well as clients throughout North America, South America, Europe, and Asia.

This is one of my favorite cd cover designs, I had this cover image in my head and I could vaguely visualize it- but I knew I really like the concept. So I started collecting images of woman’s faces to compose this collage. The cd cover was the primary focus because then there after the rest of the packaging is based on the cover design, it basically sets the art direction of the remaining package design. This band I believe is from canada and have had great success with there cd release. This cd cover design came out better than I imagined- I suspect they’ll be back for their second album release.

© 2009 Fernando Medina. Aurora, IL 60505 graphic designer and illustrator. Chicago graphic designer, cd cover designer.