Mees Klesser is a musician who wanted custom cover art for his songs.
He knew I enjoyed designing and asked me to create the visuals for his releases.
The challenge was to take the photographs he provided and turn them into artwork that matched the feeling and atmosphere of each song.
I was responsible for designing the cover art for both AFTER and WIJZE MAN.
Working with photographs provided by Mees, I created different design options and explored how to visually represent each song.
Throughout the process, I worked closely with him to make sure the final designs matched his vision.
Since this was one of my first real design assignments, I found it quite exciting, but also a little intimidating.
I remember being nervous every time I sent a design, worrying that he might not like it.
Back then, I sometimes took feedback personally instead of seeing it as part of the creative process.
Learning to deal with that was one of the biggest challenges of this project.
I started by talking with Mees about his ideas, expectations and the feeling he wanted each song to communicate.
Using the photographs he provided, I explored different visual directions and created multiple design options.
I shared my designs, collected his feedback and continued adjusting them until we found something that felt right.
It was a process of designing, discussing and redesigning, with the music always guiding the visual direction.
The final result was two cover art designs for AFTER and WIJZE MAN, both officially released by Mees Klesser.
Seeing my designs become the actual artwork for his music was incredibly exciting, especially because this was one of my first creative assignments.
It made me proud to see something I designed being used outside of school.
This project taught me that designing isn't just about creating something that looks good. It's also about understanding the feeling behind what you're creating.
I learned how important it is to listen to a client's ideas, translate a certain vibe into visuals and keep improving a design through feedback.
Most importantly, I became more comfortable sharing my work and learned that feedback isn't criticism, but an opportunity to make something better.
