Indie for the Holidays

In 2015, the Original Content team at Amazon Music reached out to the design team about creating artwork for a new playlist of original indie holiday songs called “Indie for the Holidays.” I pitched the idea of building a set in the style of the Arthur Rankin claymation holiday specials of the ’60s as a nod to the nostalgic quality of the indie genre. I chose a house as the subject because the title is a play on “Home for the Holidays.”

I mocked up a composition for the design, and once it was approved, I worked with my father to build the miniature cabin. My manager and I built the set in a conference room. A member of our social media team assisted with the photography.

I edited the photos and created the final artwork, while keeping the broad range of placements in mind. 

Songs of Summer

Leadership was very happy with the handmade aesthetic, so I was asked to create models for the series. The next playlist, “Songs of Summer,” was released in the summer of 2016. 

I decided to create another cabin scene to align with the design for the holiday playlist. 

I built the set with my father in his back yard and photographed it myself. I also did custom lettering for the title. 

Acoustic Christmas

The holiday playlist in 2016 was comprised of all acoustic songs from mostly country and Americana artists. I created a Christmas morning in the desert scene to remind listeners that you don’t have to live in a snowy part of the world to have the spirit of Christmas in your home and in your heart.

Open Road

The summer playlist for 2017 was road trip songs. This model was built in the same flower bed in my parents’ back yard as the Songs of Summer model.