Inspired by Kafka’s most famous work, Metamorphosis, I decided to depict an insect (Gregor Samsa) reading a book of the same title. I commissioned Douglas Smith to do the artwork from my rough sketch. I then created the lettering to match the engraving style of the illustration and applied a high-contrast treatment to the photograph of Kafka for consistency. I chose an uncoated stock to make the art appear more like a vintage print than a new illustration.

Cover within a cover that is not gratuitous—perfect.