Final Concept

After explaining the concepts and getting feedback from the group, I've devised a new concept that incorporates several aspects of the three separate concepts into one:

Morgan is a sorceress whose job it is to explain the riddles of life. This time she focusses on how eyes see color. With a magic spell she takes us into the eyes. Every page is then filled with a Haiku (a riddle of sorts) that stimulates the children to use their own imagination. On pages in the back the entire story (text) is then explained for parents to read along so they can help them figure stuff out, or the older children themselves.

The visuals will be in a watercolor-like painting style. With muted colors (lilac and such) to create a dreamy atmosphere, which is also a bit nostalgic (due to the sepia tones). Below are some examples. I like the color setting of the first picture and the visual style of the second.

I Think that the concept is appropriate for Children in Western Europe because it introduces a playful way of learning new things. Through active participation, the Haiku's, they are forced to think about things instead of having the information handed to them on a silver platter. This helps them retain the information better and also, it helps them utilize their imagination in a world that seems to be more and more focused on reality than cultivating the strength of the imagination. Strengthening their imagination also helps the children become more creative. So it will have double effect: provide info and stimulate them mentally.

The riddles are chosen because it's a slightly more conceptual way of thinking, but not as symbolic as to recoil them. Because children of those ages are still drawn to concrete things rather than symbols I'll use images that are very common (unless that's impossible) or try to make things more concrete through the explanation. In line with the Japanese concept proposal I aim to minimize the info and have only bare necessities on paper, because it has to be a guideline for their thinking instead of dictate.

The format that I've selected, after a lot of thought, is A4. I want to present it in a horizontal way, so that every page is double printed: a front and back. I've chosen this format because I want children to be able to take it with them wherever they go and solve their riddles everywhere. The metal ring that I want to use to bind it will give it a workbook/notebook look and feel. A bigger format such as A3 will it more inconvenient to travel with (speaking out of personal experience with 'Reis Naar Woudland'), and a A5 template will make everything far to small to read and I'll end up loosing detail. Although A4 seems like a generic thing to select, I've actually given it a lot of thought.