The front cover of Florence and the Machine's album "Lungs" depicts Florence wearing fake lungs around her neck, relating to the album's title. Her unconventional hairstyle fits with the indie rock genre. The black and white photo inside shows Florence wrapping her arms around herself, suggesting insecurity or shyness. Overall, the album art conveys a sense of innocence through Florence's gentle pose and the fantasy forest setting behind her.

1. Characters
The front cover of this digipak shows
Florence herself portrayed in an almost
storybook fashion. She is shown
wearing a pair of fake lungs attached to
a ribbon around her neck – this related
to the title of the album. Florence’s hair
is also cut and styled into an
unconventional look which relates well
to the ‘indie rock’ genre of the album as
its different as oppose to a mainstream
look. A photograph of Florence alone
has been used for the art within the CD:
this image is in black and white and
shows the singer wrapping her arms
around herself – this suggests a sense of
insecurity or shyness, giving the singer a
hint of innocence and purity. This is also
reflected within the main cover as the
singers body language appears gently
positioned.
Narrative
The digipak seems to have a narrative
as there is a suggestion of a
fantasy/storybook world within the
front cover image. The digipak does
entice the audience to purchase the CD
as the front cover image as well as
choice of title ‘Lungs’ intrigues the
audience to want to understand the
reasons behind them further.
Iconography
As the album name is ‘Lungs’, iconography has been as the main
singer is shown wearing a fake pair of lungs in the album art front
cover, as well as a diagram of a pair of lungs used on the back of
the album art, relating to the album title. For the CD art, a close
up shot of a pair of hands grasping what appears to be a heart
has been used. This maybe have been used to keep the organ
theme going, but also may suggest a possible struggle as the
hands are roughly positioned around the organ instead of holding
it delicately as the heart itself is one of the most essential organs.
This could relate to possible heartbreak which may link to some
of the tracks on the album ‘Lungs’.
Setting
The front cover appears to have
the main singer posed in front of
a large draping curtain which looks
grey/navy and almost bark like as
if the singer is standing in front of
a large tree. In front of this curtain
yet behind Florence are also
blossomed branches and birds –
this makes the mise en scene
appear to be set in a make believe
forest giving the impression of a
storybook/fantasy world
suggesting a world of purity and
innocence.
Style
The colours of this digipak appear
rather muted and calming, such as
the use of soft blues/greys and
dark reds within the front cover
artwork. This relates to the indie
genre, capturing the audiences
attention creatively, but doesn’t
stand out too much with uses of
vivid colours that an album of the
pop genre may conventionally use.
The back cover of the album is
also black and white, making it
simple for the audience to read
and acknowledge. The CD art
itself, however, is shown using a
warmer yellow tone, yet is still
rather muted. The use of the
colour yellow gives a warmer feel
to the image of the heart
suggesting feelings
Digipak Analysis: Florence and the Machine – Lungs – Indie Rock Genre

2. Characters
The album art for Kanye West’s
album ‘My Beautiful Dark
Twisted Fantasy’ uses paintings
painted by artist George Congo -
5 alternate covers were created
for this album. In this version, it
shows Kanye’s severed head,
crowned, being pierced with a
sword. The character appears
fearsome and powerful, with the
facial expression and the
portrayal of his eyes wide open,
relating to song ‘Power’ from the
album. His assumed status is also
conveyed through the crown that
he wears, suggesting the artist
believes he is dominant and
higher than everyone else. The
CD art shows another one of the
George Condo paintings, one
which was banned by Apple and
superstores for being too
provocative, featuring a naked
half woman half creature on top
of a man shown drinking. The
bizarreness of the painting
suggest Kanye’s desire to be
different and willingness to break
rules. It also further supports the
suggestion of Kanye’s powerful
persona, as he new such painting
would cause controversy in the
media, yet continued to use it
anyway.
Narrative
The use of specially made
intriguing paintings by George
Condo for this CD entices the
audience by being so mysterious
forcing them to wonder what
each of them mean. Once
listening to the album, the
paintings begin to make sense.
Iconography
As an album of the hip hop genre,
this digipak does not show the
stereotypical features expected of
a hip hop CD. Instead, artist
paintings are used for the front
cover, suggesting a higher social
class as oppose to the stereotypical
street-raised rappers who
emphasis their rough upbringing.
Although in painting form, the
character is still recognisable as
Kanye West which could be classed
as iconic as there is no artist name
on the CD itself, just the image.
Setting
The album front cover painting appears
to be set in a dreamlike world,
featuring clouds and vivid blue skies,
which conveys an image of a fantasy
heaven-like setting, relating to the title
of ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’.
The characters severed head appears
on a podium-like display, further
suggesting the artists power and
supremacy thoughts about himself and
also referring to the track ‘Power’. On
the back, the album tracks are written
in a creative font. The type of font used
suggest a similar quality to calligraphy
– this font gives the album an almost
regal sense, which again relates to
power and royalty.
Style
As the album art is all digital with no
used of photographs, only paintings,
no camera was used. The use of the
colour red is frequent throughout the
digipak, used on both the front cover,
back cover and internal artwork. This
colour connotes strength and power –
a continuous theme of this digipak.
Within the inside, typography of the
artists name ‘Kanye West’ spreads
across 4 pages. This creative design
reflects the artists imaginative side,
which could also refer back to the
‘fantasy’ setting/theme of the digipak.
Digipak Analysis: Kanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Hip Hop Genre