SPD 47: Simon Esterson's Favorite Magazine

Simon Esterson, Esterson Associates
Favorite Magazine: Inventario

I am in love with so many magazines, but the Italian magazine Inventario sits on the corner of my desk and I keep finding myself drawn back to it. Covering design, architecture and art it features an amazing range of ideas and images. Printed on uncoated paper with very restrained typography, it has the ability within one issue to look like both a busy sketchbook and a formal art catalogue. Editor: Beppe Finessi. Design: Artemio Croatto/Designwork.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Does One Size Fit All? Let's Discuss!

Adweek yesterday stirred the blogosphere with an article titled "Magazines Pull Back on Tablet Bells and Whistles; Why It's Back To Basics for Some Publishers," quoting publishing executives about how they are simplifying their tablet editions in order to reach as many types of devices as possible. "Interactive elements are valuable to [readers], but they're a secondary benefit," said Time Inc.'s Steve Sachs. Chris Wilkes of Hearst Magazines' App Lab warned that interactive elements are "more likely to be distracting, cause confusion and occasionally irritate customers."

The design community was quick to respond.
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SPD 47: Emily Crawford's Favorite Magazine

Emily Crawford, Senior Art Director, Time
Favorite Magazine: Adbusters

Full disclosure: I wouldn't normally have chosen this publication, although I think the cover of this issue is quite strong. I picked it because the magazine essentially jump-started the Occupy Wall Street movement----which, to me, is proof of how powerful and relevant magazines still are and how they can sometimes even change the world.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Holiday Bash! Wednesday 12/14

More Presents. More food. More drinks. More fun. More often.

Join SPD for our annual Holiday Bash on Wednesday, December 14th at W.i.P. (Work In Progress) at 150 Varick St NYC (near Vandam St, at the A/C/E Spring Street stop) for hours of drinks (wine! cocktails! and this year, beer has been lovingly provided by Brooklyn Brewery too!), food, great tunes and sweet prizes.

A special holiday treat for our out-of-town-members: Check back in with spd.org next week for a preview of the great giveaways up for grabs that night to enter your raffles--we want to ship some of these great prizes to you! Winners will be posted online after the event.

Get your tickets (save money! easily expense this!) after the jump...
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Cover of the Day, November 28, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We post our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

GreenSource, November/December 2011

Happy Thanksgiving! 11 Illustrated New Yorker Thanksgiving Covers

The New Yorker has been publishing Thanksgiving covers for most of its history. But our favorites are the ones done since 1993, all art directed by Francoise Mouly. Here are 10 of our favorites (plus one pre-93 cover by Saul Steinberg because we loved it so much!)… MORE

SPD 47: Khoi Vinh's Favorite Magazine

Khoi Vinh, Co-founder, Lascaux Co.
Favorite Magazine: Reeder

My favorite bit of 'editorial' design is an iPad (and iPhone) app called Reeder. It's an RSS aggregator. Actually it's just an interface that plugs into my Google Reader account. But it makes surveying a ton of news sources, blogs and update feeds simple, elegant and even addictive. I read it every single day.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

On the Ground: New Book Collection of 60s Underground Press

On the Ground is a great new book about the 1960s (and early 70s) underground press, edited by Sean Stewart, the mastermind behind Tumblr site Babylon Falling. The book is packed with reproductions of underground newspaper front pages, comics, graphics, and much more, all in color, and most not seen publicly in over 40 years. Represented are newspapers like the Berkeley Barb, Los Angeles Free Press, East Village Other, the Black Panther, and many more.  And there's a healthy dose of underground comics and comic book covers, too. In addition to the wonderful imagery, Stewart has collected an oral history of the time, interviewing former underground press editors, artists, and scene makers. On the Ground is a pure visual treat, and is our choice as our #1 holiday gift for friends and family.… MORE

SAVE THE DATE Wednesday, 12/14!

Join SPD for our annual Holiday Bash for drinks, food, and great giveaways on Wednesday, December 14th. Be the first to reserve your tickets (and SPD Members! Save even more with the Members Only Early Bird Rate!) after the jump...
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Cover of the Day, November 23, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

Fortune India, November 2011
Creative Director and Illustrator: Nilanjan Das

Conde Nast: All Fire'd Up

One week after its launch, the Kindle Fire is proving to be a platform for publishers that rivals Apple's iPad. The industry is estimating 4-5 million devices to be sold this holiday season. Its smaller screen and 16:9 proportions does have its challenges for those reformatting magazine pages to the tablet screen, but the size of the potential audience is considerble. … MORE

SPD 47: Walter Bernard's Favorite Magazine

Walter Bernard, Principle, Walter Bernard Consultancy
Favorite Magazine: Linda

A Dutch women's magazine unlike any in the US. It uses real people as models, covers taboo subjects, and is presented in a high-spirited bold design with equally bold photography.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

SPD 47: George Pitts' Favorite Magazine

George Pitts, Photographer and Professor, Parsons, The New School for Design
Favorite Magazine: Purple

Purple is a favorite largely for the long interviews with artists, and cultural figures that range from across the arts, from Alejandro Jodorowsky to David Lynch to Taryn Simon; and also for its adventurous, often racy photographs, with pictorials ranging from Juergen Teller to Steven Klein, and numerous emerging talents.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Cover of the Day, November 21, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

Harper's Bazaar, December 2010/January 2011
Design Director: Elizabeth Hummer
Photographer: Tom Munro
Fashion Editor: Arianne Phillips

SPD 47: Luis Mendo's Favorite Magazine

Luis Mendo, Founder, Editorial Design Consultant and Designer, GOOD Inc. Amsterdam
Favorite magazine: IL -- Intelligence in Lifestyle

I've chosen IL because design-wise it fulfills everything I want to see in a mag: brave typography, great imagery and a strong personality. The design team has made something special out of what could be just another newspaper supplement. The recent re-launch has made it even better than it already was. The new typography feels familiar and the mag is now a better version of itself, a grown up where you still can see the child. And I am so fond of their weakest point: the paper. Although coarse, thin and cheap in the feel, the team of designers, pre-press and printers does its best with it. The result is very pleasant to look at, despite everything. I love the smell of it too, but that's another story.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Announcing the Next Master Class: Eye of a Photo Editor, with Kira Pollack

We're pleased to announce the next SPD Master Class, and most importantly, the amazing, award-winning, best-of-the-best talent leading it: Kira Pollack, Director of Photography for TIME, TIME.com, TIME on the tablets, the TIME photography site LightBox and companion Tumblr, and, of course, the creative lead behind the multi-media 9/11 project that spanned print, digital, web, television and gallery exhibitions. For just one day, Saturday, December 3, Kira will be giving YOU an extremely exclusive opportunity to learn and to not only be inspired, but also to ask all the questions you want and push back on the answers. Show some of your own work. Address some of your most pressing challenges. Find out how she gets it done...and what she's looking for in the next generation of photo editors. After this 1-day intensive workshop, you'll have a new mentor, a deeper professional network, and a broader skill-set to take to work on Monday morning.
More info and registration after the jump...
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SPD 47: Dora Somosi's Favorite Magazine

Dora Somosi, Director of Photography, GQ
Favorite magazine: Polka Magazine

I was given this copy of Polka Magazine by an inspiring young photographer named Ethan Levitas, whose work is included here. The feature well consists of portfolios by photographers mostly engaged in documentary and/or fine art work, with imagery by both legends like Elliott Erwitt, and future giants like Levitas. The design is simple--reminiscent of old layouts from Life and Vu--the photography well curated, and the reproduction very fine, all of which will surely make Polka a collector's item.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Inked Takes Day of the Dead High Fashion with Zombie Boy

Can't get enough of The Walking Dead? We know. Inked's Creative Director Todd Weinberger, always ahead of the curve, tells us about the fashion shoot with Zombie Boy in their November issue:

Normally I would not have profiled Zombie Boy were it not for his recent jump into the high fashion world, starring in Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" video and walking in Thierry Mugler's show this past winter. We're technically a "tattoo magazine" but I think of us more as a lifestyle magazine for people with tattoos. I decided that in honor of Halloween it would be very cool to shoot Zombie Boy and since our deadline coincided with fashion week, I knew he would be coming to NYC which would be easy on our limited production budget.

Read how it all came together, and see the full-fashion zombified shoot, after the jump...
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SPD 47: Luke Hayman's Favorite Magazine

Luke Hayman (SPD 47 Co-Chair), Partner, Pentagram
Favorite magazine: Lotus Magazine

Designed by Anton Ioukhnovets, the custom publication Lotus is a riff on an old-school men's magazine with hot cars as the center folds. This is an English sports car brand with tremendous heritage which the design captures while simultaneously being contemporary. The format is large and lush - a spread covers the area of 4 ipad screens - and it's well used. The typography and design is deceptively simple. This magazine is a pleasure.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

SPD 47: Jeremy Leslie's Favorite Magazine

Jeremy Leslie (SPD 47 Co-Chair), Editor, Creative Director, Magculture
Favorite magazine: mono.kultur

The best editorial ideas are deceptively simple, and right now English-language German culture magazine mono.kultur is my favourite example of beautifully executed simplicity.

As its name suggests, each edition features just one artist. They're the focus of an in-depth interview which is published alongside examples of their work. See what I mean about simple? Subjects have included fashion designer Dries van Noten, actor Tilda Swinton, photographer Ryan McGinley and author/performance artist Miranda July.

The physical format of the magazine changes every issue, as does the layout design. The only constant is the basic size, a petite A5, and the tiny title text on the cover. The Dave Eggers issue, no25 (shown), unfolded to a poster-sized scale mimicking a book printers running sheet; no19, featuring cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, ran in a filmic landscape format. There have been multiple throw outs, tip-ins, various combinations of papers and special inks - including the use of special scented ink devised by smell artist Sissel Tolass.

mono.kultur is a beautifully designed and produced piece of print that introduces and records the work of leading contemporary creative voices. It has become a highly collectible series and has just reached its 29th issue, about musician Chris Taylor from Grizzly Bear.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

SPD 47: Richard Turley's Favorite Magazine

Richard Turley (SPD 47 Co-Chair), Creative Director, Bloomberg Businessweek
Favorite magazine: 'Sup Magazine

Music magazines are cursed by the paradox of musicians never having anything interesting to say, yet people asking them loads of questions anyway. And whilst I can't claim to have read everything in 'Sup, it's such a great-looking mag I have to buy it just to feel like I read it.

From an art point of view, the magazine is really about photography, which pushes you all over the place from crunchy black and white, color-saturated portraits, contingent still lives; it feels temporary, accidental, never forced, always fun. The design is out of the reductive school of trying to look like your not obsessed about the position of the headline even though you know there has been a lot of care going into each page. But the real skill is in the pacing. All the articles are very similar (interview plus photos) which can be tricky to manage, but there is real surprise when you turn the page and that sense of surprise and messing with the reader which I love in all great magazines.

This post is part of the Favorite Magazines Project, part of SPD's PUB 47 Competition and Awards. Download the entry forms and be a part of the competition here.

Magazines on Fire

The Kindle Fire is set to debut on Tuesday with Facebook, Twitter, Netflix and "several thousand other apps including over 400 magazine and newspaper titles. With nine magazines (below), Conde Nast appears to have the largest collection ready for launch day. Other big titles include Reader's Digest, Hearst's Elle and Oprah, Time Inc's Fortune, People, and Time. Here's a rundown of magazines we've seen available on the Kindle Fire Newsstand in sync with the launch.… MORE

SPD 47: Your Favorite Magazine

To get us ready for SPD 47: The Best in Editorial Design, Photography and Illustration, we've asked a lot art and photo directors from around the world to tell us the magazines or apps that they really love. The ones they can't wait to get their hands on, the ones that fire their creative spirit: you know, the ones that make you jealous, or supremely happy, or both.

Each day we'll be posting a different one, to give you an idea of not only the incredible creativity going on every day in magazines, but also the huge range of magazines that people look at.

And you know... it's surprising. It turns out we love a lot of different magazines, from all over the world, and that we are a curious bunch, us magazine people.

Check back with us on Monday for the first of many favorites to come. Enter your own favorite work in SPD by downloading the Call for Entries and all instructions and entry forms here.

Recap: Tablet Town Hall

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Pub 46: Student Competition

THE STUDENT COMPETITION & THE ADOBE SCHOLARSHIP IN HONOR OF B.W. HONEYCUTT - Established in 1995, this competition honors the life and work of B.W. Honeycutt. It recognizes exceptional design by students with awards and three cash prizes: the Adobe Scholarship in Honor of B.W. Honeycutt, the first-place prize of $2500; second-place prize of $1000; and a third-place prize of $500. The top winners also received summer internships magazines in New York City. Chaired by Ian Doherty, Art Director at Food Network Magazine and Neil Jamieson, Design Director, Money, this juried competition acknowledges the student designer and the teachers who develop their unique talents.

 

In recognizing the promise of each student, Adobe affirms the creative possibilities inherent in the individual. Throughout its partnership with SPD, Adobe is helping shape the next generation of creative professionals. Together we are building the groundwork that will sustain and further artistic accomplishments within the editorial design community.

Special thanks to the judges:

Evan Campisi, Nylon

John Dixon, The Village Voice

Robert Festino, Men's Health

Elizabeth Hummer, Harper's Bazaar

Kory Kennedy, Runner's World

Gloria Pantell, TV Guide

James Reyman, Reyman Studio

 

The Society thanks our partner, Adobe Systems, Inc. for their ongoing support with this project.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Now available on Amazon:

Click here to purchase the hard cover annual: 

Want more information on entering this year's competition? 

Click here for our 24-7-365 awards central.

Pub 46: Spots

Chairs Criswell Lappin (Fahrenheit 212) and Matthew Lenning (MAT: Design Co) led the 24th Annual SPOTS competition, championing the little illustrations that say so much. From hundreds of entries, the judges selected a class of illustrations that do an excellent job of amplifying the editorial message, from a wide spectrum of publications. Winners are featured in a visual index here, and celebrated more extensively in a very limited-edition book published biannually, The SPOTS Book, showcasing both the illustrations and smaller versions of the original editorial pages that featured the work.

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Pub 46: Competition Credits

The SPD Annual Judging weekend is a tremendous event bringing together the most experienced and admired creatives working with editorial content today, challenging them to sift through thousands of entries in just a few days to find the best of the best you see featured in this book. To accomplish so much, in such a short time, requires the outstanding effort of so many--once again, however, SPD is blessed to have beyond outstanding support from a small army, and they make it look easy. Andrea Dunham, Design Director, People, and Brandon Kavulla, Creative Director, WIRED, (Co-Chairs), Jeremy LaCroix, Creative Director, CBS Interactive and Josh Klenert, Creative Director, Clear Channel Digital (Online Chairs), Luke Hayman, Partner, Pentagram (Magazine of the Year Chair), and Nancy Stamatopoulos (Competition Captain) extend an enormous thank-you on behalf of SPD to all the judges and volunteers for their support in making the judging happen this year, emergency fire alarm be damned! in January 2011 at FIT.

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Announcing Pub 47 Co-Chairs!

It's both a tremendous honor, and loaded with more than a bit of excitement, to announce the co-chairs for the upcoming SPD PUB 47 Awards:

For the print competition, for the first time ever, we have three co-chairs to announce: Luke Hayman (Partner, Pentagram), Jeremy Leslie (Editor and Creative Director, Magculture) and Richard Turley (Creative Director, Bloomberg Businessweek). (Editor's note: must not be British to enter or win.)

The digital competition will be led by Scher Foord (Special Projects Director, Time Inc. Style and Entertainment Group) and Joe Zeff (President, Joe Zeff Design).

PUB 47 will recognize the best in editorial design, photography and illustration in print and digital from 2011. In addition to a few special categories we're adding to reflect the astounding year that 2011 has been around the world, we're also pleased to announce another first: an early-bird deadline of December 15, 2011 -- if we have your entries by then, you'll save some significant cash.

So get those interns to work! Start flagging and pulling the tearsheets you know you need to enter, and click here for the full download of the Call for Entries, new special categories, and early-bird info, and check back to SPD.org daily for a rolling spotlight on our love of magazines, and magazine-makers, up until the final deadline.

SPD West: Unsung Heroes 4 "With Love, LA"

If you're hitting the Wednesday afternoon wall hard, we've got a dose of inspiration to get you sitting up a little straighter and back to work a little harder: five inspiring videos that kicked-off the presentations from our last Speakeasy West, Unsung Heroes 4. Ten amazing talents talked creativity and storytelling from a range of vantage points and experiences, inspiring all the Los Angelenos in attendance. So give yourself ten minutes of zen and follow us after the jump for your little dose of creative adrenaline this afternoon....

(Illustration above, "Pipe" by John Van Hamersveld.)
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Cover of the Day, November 9, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

The New York Times Magazine, November 13, 2011
Editor: Hugo Lindgren
Design Director: Arem Duplessis
Art Director: Gail Bichler
Deputy Art Director: Caleb Bennett
Designers: Hilary Greenbaum, Sara Cywnar, Drea Zlanabitnig
Illustrator: Tim Enthoven

Today's cover is a sneak-peek at this Sunday's coming edition of The New York Times Magazine, featuring the story "The Human Swap: How a single Israeli came to be worth 1,027 Palestinians."

Says DD Arem Duplessis, "Tim Enthoven, the illustrator, did each and every one of the 1028 figures by hand!"

Cover of the Day, November 8, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

The Ring, August 1973
R.I.P. "Smokin'" Joe Frazier, 1944-2011

Thanks to Greg Pond for the cover.

Cover of the Day, November 7, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

Fortune, November 21, 2011

Boston magazine

The Boston Globe newspaper has been a fertile breeding ground for magazine designers. Richard Baker, Gail Anderson, Lynn Staley, and current Fortune design director Emily Kehe, among others, all cut their teeth in the Globe's newsroom. The latest Globe veteran to move to magazine design is Chin Wang, who has been the design director at Boston magazine since early 2010. Wang spent eight years at the Globe, designing everything from the weekend Metro section to the Sunday magazine. Since moving to Boston, Wang has given the magazine a sparkling new look, filled with powerful photos and illustrations and lots of graphic surprise and delight. Wang describes the magazine's look as "clean and elegant, inventive but not precious, clever but not too insider-y," and says about her staff that "what we don't have in budget, we make up for with enthusiasm and resourcefulness!"… MORE

Ask a Question, Get a Chance to Win a New iPad

At our Tablet Town Hall next Thursday, the 10th, we've got experts Shawn Duffy from WoodWing, Steve Hart from Adobe, and Joe Zeff from Joe Zeff Design coming to talk a little about what they know to be coming next in the world of digital publishing, whether it's for the iPad, your Android tablet or the new Amazon Kindle Fire. And while we know they've got a lot of great information to show and tell, the night's really about YOU: what do YOU need to know? What are your questions and concerns? Perhaps you're like the SPD member who told us this morning that they need to come because,

"I don't know anything about this, and it scares the **** out of me."

So here's where you stop being scared and start getting ahead. And if that's not enough to get you to RSVP after the jump, we know what is: our very good friends at Tekserve are giving away an iPad at the Tablet Town Hall.
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Cover of the Day, November 2, 2011

Welcome to The SPD Cover of the Day. We'll be posting our favorite covers every Monday and Wednesday. Stay tuned for the best and coolest magazine and newspaper covers, as selected by our stellar group of experts.

Moderna Tidskrifters Basar, Issue 1
Art Director: Matilda Svensson
Photographer: Michel Widenius