This exercise was to create a beer can design based off a name given randomly through a generator. The comic book concept came from the idea of “making a beer for the introverts;” allowing for people to get away with awkwardly reading a beer can instead of socializing, because why not put a comic on it?
Concept
The concept of “creating a beer for the introverts” didn’t come right away. I wanted to create a can design unlike one I’d seen in the past, and I’ve always been in love with the styles seen in the the “Golden” to the “Bronze” ages of comic books.
My first idea was to simply create a design that reflected that style; something exciting, maybe implying an Indiana Jones level heist of the Heart of Gold.
Over time, I found that I wasn’t satisfied with just that, even more so when I had the final illustration laid out. It was just the same as every other beer can you see at the grocery store: exciting for a minute then easily forgotten the next.
My next thought was “If I want a comic, I better make it a comic.”
Pre-Critique
While not a full fledged comic strip, this concept sparked an interest in me and it’s something I’m very interested in exploring in the future.
Critique
During my critique, I was lucky enough to get feedback from a designer currently working for SunKing Brewery in Indianapolis: William Denton Ray.
This was an amazing opportunity to get real life feedback from someone in the industry. Critique in this setting was both enlightening and extremely helpful for how I can plan to go about my future work.
After the critique I was able to make all the changes he recommended to improve the final work and give it the same treatment professional packaging would have.
Edits
The changes themselves were very minor, mostly things to make the can design more visibly appealing during a marketing shoot: something I hadn’t taken into consideration before, but now can plan for in the future.
