Project Overview
Blind Steps, Bold Heart is a vector portrait and book cover design. This project represents a personal journey of growth, learning, and moving forward despite uncertainty. The cover was designed to visually communicate ambition, resilience, and curiosity through symbolism, color, and composition. he tone was intentionally calm, clean, respectful, and educational, avoiding heavy or aggressive visuals.
Concept & Meaning
The portrait shows the subject with one eye covered, symbolizing partial blindness—not being completely lost, but still figuring things out. One hand reaches forward, representing determination and the willingness to move ahead. The dark background represents uncertainty, while the strong light in front symbolizes opportunity and future direction. Binary code elements were added to connect the concept to learning, technology, and discovery.
Design Process
1. Concept Development
The project began with written concept notes and sketches focused on themes of growth, ambition, and perseverance. A comic-style visual direction was chosen to give the piece a bold, confident, and narrative-driven feel.
2. Visual Style & Mood Board
A mood board was created using references from comic art, graphic novels, and bold digital portrait styles. These references helped guide the use of strong outlines, simplified shapes, and expressive color choices.
3. Source Image & Illustration
A reference photo was used to build the vector portrait. The illustration was created in Adobe Illustrator, focusing on clean shapes, layered shading, and controlled outlines to maintain clarity and consistency.
4. Title Treatment
Title: Blind Steps, Bold Heart
Artist Name: Beheshta Eqbali
Marker Felt:
Comic Sans MS
Brush Script MT Italic
5. First Cover (Draft)
6. Feedback & Revisions
Based on peer and instructor feedback, I refined several parts of the design. Adjustments were made to hand proportions, lighting, outline consistency, and color balance. The final color scheme incorporated pink and orange tones to add warmth and energy, while a white outline was added to unify the composition.
Outcome
The final result is a strong, narrative-driven book cover that combines vector illustration, symbolism, and graphic design. The project demonstrates concept development, visual storytelling, iteration based on feedback, and technical execution in Illustrator.
Tools Used
- Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Fonts