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Viva Cuba!: Cuban Designer Gabriel León Lara

Viva Cuba!: Cuban Designer Gabriel León Lara

Designers   03.14.16   posted by The Editors

SPD Ex-0fficio Board member (and former President) Francesca Messina recently sat down with  Cuban graphic designer Gabriel (Gabo) León Lara in Havana. Gabriel represents the emerging multi-talented Cuba-based designers whose work spans poster design, identity design, illustration and publication design. As the U.S. embargo starts to lift, the awareness of the rich body of work and talent in Cuba will increase.

Says Francesca: "What struck me, aside from Gabo's obvious talent, was the story he told of the difficulties that designers in Cuba face in practicing their profession. Cuba has a storied legacy of poster design, and a world-class university program that has graduated generations of super talents. But on an everyday basis, lack of access to the internet and lack of access to basic hardware and software, and art supplies, makes accomplishing the great work they do even more extraordinary."

(see the complete interview after the slideshow).
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SPD Q&A: Nathalie Kirsheh

SPD Q&A: Nathalie Kirsheh

Design   12.03.15   posted by The Editors

The December issue of Details will be its last, and that's a terrible thing. Not only terrible for the print industry, but especially bad for the style-deprived men that depend on its scent-filled pages. 

For the last five years, Nathalie Kirsheh has stretched the visual bedrock of Rockwell Harwood into something remarkable. Anyone who's serious about publication design knows Nathaile's work. Her design is some of the most inspirational, forward-thinking, delicate, violent, head-scratching, how'd-she-come-up-with-that type of design that we've all tried to copy at one time or another.  

In the days following the announcement of the demise of Details, we asked Kirsheh a couple of questions about her past and her future. This is what she had to say. 

(By the way check out Nathalie's website, it's pretty great: nathaliekirsheh.com)

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SPD Playlists: Stravinski Pierre

SPD Playlists: Stravinski Pierre

Playlist   11.13.15   posted by The Editors

Our first playlist is from Esquire's Stravinski Pierre. He says, "I listen to a lot of action movie soundtracks at work. It makes me feel like a superhero, saving the world one pica at a time!"
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Pop-Up Portfolio: Marshall McKinney

Pop-Up Portfolio: Marshall McKinney

Designers   09.20.12   posted by Patrick Mitchell

WHO: Marshall McKinney

AGE: 39

LOCATION: Charleston, South Carolina

DAY JOB: Garden & Gun

C.V.: Founding art director, Garden & Gun and Outside's Go; designer at Outside


See the portfolio...
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Surfing + Espresso Bar + Apparel = Saturdays Surf

Surfing + Espresso Bar + Apparel = Saturdays Surf

Cool   09.04.12   posted by Nathalie Kirsheh

....and now a bi annual magazine!
We caught up with Colin Tunstall, one of the co founders of Saturdays Surf The downtown NYC surf shop on Crosby St (with new locations--the West Village, and their Tokyo flagship,) and talked to him about his pseudo return to publishing as the editor-in-chief role in their first issue of Saturdays Magazine.  while ringing in their 3rd anniversary. More after the jump...


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Pop-Up Portfolio: Francesco Poroli

Pop-Up Portfolio: Francesco Poroli

Designers   06.21.12   posted by Patrick Mitchell


AGE: 37

LOCATION: Milan, Italy

PUBLICATION: Rivista Ufficiale NBA (Official NBA Magazine)

C.V.: Freelance art director and illustrator from several clients including The New York Times Magazine, Wired (Italy), IL: Intelligence in Lifestyle, Glamour, Reebok


See More Work...
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5 Questions with Vanessa Wyse of Toronto's 'The Grid'

5 Questions with Vanessa Wyse of Toronto's 'The Grid'

Designers   06.13.12   posted by Patrick Mitchell

The Grid is a "city" weekly--not to be confused with an "alternative" weekly--published by the Toronto Star. Dubbed "Toronto at street level" (thus, "The Grid"--see what they did there?) the newsprint publication is distributed on the streets and for free.

"We wanted to turn the idea of a free urban weekly on its head and create a new kind of product. A kind of a hybrid. Something that looked and read like a magazine but physically was more akin to a newspaper. A mag that has relevant content, clean and contemporary design and highly-produced original photography. Something that readers would be a little bit reluctant to throw away at the end of the week," says The Grid's CD, Vanessa Wyse. "We wanted to reflect the true feeling of Toronto. There is a very raw approach to the photography and the tone of the magazine. It can be very tempting to look at great city mags like New York and take our cues from there, since they do it so well. But I think we have been successful in creating a magazine that is completely different."

Apparently, a few people agree. The Grid just celebrated its first anniversary by cleaning up in the design categories at Les Prix du Magazine Canadien (The Canadian National Magazine Awards), winning 4 golds and 2 silvers. Let's see how they did it ...




 
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LA Story: 8 Questions with Steve Banks

LA Story: 8 Questions with Steve Banks

Designers   03.13.12   posted by Patrick Mitchell

When Bon Appetit and Architectural Digest relocated to New York last year, they left a gaping hole in the Los Angeles publishing scene. Once a thriving magazine town--L.A. Style, Creem, Beach Culture, Raygun, Hollywood Life, and New West were all SPD award regulars--there's now only a handful of big pubs left.

But amid all the change, Steven Banks has been the model of consistency in west coast magazine design. As Design Director of Los Angeles, Banks has been a big part of the magazine's recent winning streak, which includes a 2011 National Magazine Award for General Excellence from ASME. Banks was recently named Designer of the Year by the City & Regional Magazine Association (CRMA) for the second time since he joined LA Mag.

Indeed, LA publication design runs in the Banks' family. Steve's wife, Nancy Duckworth is an award-winning former AD at the LA Times magazine, and is currently freelance art directing several LA-based publications.

Meet Steve and see more work after the jump ...



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Behind the scenes with Editions designer David Robinson

Behind the scenes with Editions designer David Robinson

Websites & Apps   08.04.11   posted by Jeremy LaCroix

Editions Icon.pngEditions, the highly anticipated magazine App produced by AOL, Mobile has just hit the App store boasting the tag line "The Magazine that Reads You". It's the first digital magazine I know of that integrates tagging of a user's interests and maps content to those choices offering up a unique personalized magazine every day. Recently I got to sit down with David Robinson, Head of UX & Mobile Design for AOL to ask him a few questions about the process from a designers point of view.… MORE
Ron Gabriel: The (almost) Graduate

Ron Gabriel: The (almost) Graduate

Designers   03.03.11   posted by Gail Anderson

Ron worked as a magazine art director until August 2009, when he left Hearst Magazines to pursue a MFA in Design from the School of Visual Arts. He worked for titles including Seventeen, New Woman, The New York Times Upfront, and CosmoGirl, as well as the international editions of Cosmopolitan, Harper's Bazaar and Esquire. We first hooked up with Ron when he was just beginning his two-year stint as a graduate student in SVA's Designer as Author program, so we wanted to check in again as he prepares to graduate.
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Back to School--for an MFA in Design

Back to School--for an MFA in Design

Designers   03.03.10   posted by Gail Anderson

I met Ron Gabriel in the fall 2009 semester of my Just Type class in the MFA program at the School of Visual Arts, where I teach. He looked familiar to me, and I soon figured out why. A longtime magazine designer at a host of New York-based publications, Ron's most recent job before returning to the classroom was as Creative Director for the international editions of Hearst Magazines. Small world, indeed. 

I was curious to find out more about what made Ron decide to go back to school in the middle of a successful career in publication design, and thought you might be interested, too. So Ron took a moment from a Ramen Noodle and coffee-fueled day to answer a few questions...
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Under (W's) Cover: Edward Leida

Under (W's) Cover: Edward Leida

Designers   02.11.10   posted by Nathalie Kirsheh

One of my favorite type of discoveries is to learn why and how a designer came up with an idea. So I'd like to share a peek behind the scenes at a great inspiration that I collaborate with on a daily basis: W magazine's Design Director Edward Leida and his twenty+ years of experience setting the design tone for the magazine.
This week, Wmag.com asked him to talk us through some of his most intriguing layouts for the title and how he keeps it real.
Check out the video interview here or watch after the jump...
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The Wilde Years [at SPD]

The Wilde Years [at SPD]

SpeakEasy   10.01.09   posted by Gail Anderson

If you're an SVA graphic design department alum, then you remember sitting in the darkened 23rd Street amphitheater, hoping that your work would appear on screen in Richard's class. If you're as old as I am, you designed your name in many moods on the large handouts that were distributed each week, or created a work of art on a printout of a brick wall. Maybe you even had that assignment where you mailed Richard an envelope that said something about YOU. I can't remember what I had for dinner last night, but I remember those Richard Wilde assignments like they were yesterday.… MORE
ART DIREDITOR: Interview with Vanessa Holden, New VP Editor-In-Chief of Martha Stewart Weddings

ART DIREDITOR:
Interview with Vanessa Holden, New VP Editor-In-Chief of Martha Stewart Weddings

Designers   10.23.08   posted by Deb Bishop

Vanessa Holden joined Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia in August 2008 as Editor-in-Chief of Martha Stewart Weddings. Vanessa came to MSLO from Vanessa Holden AD+D, a consulting firm focused on magazine development as well as book and branding projects, specializing in food and lifestyle. Prior to that she was Creative Director of Real Simple magazine, and before that co-founded and worked as the Creative Director of the award-winning Donna Hay magazine. A native of Australia, Vanessa previously worked at Marie Claire (Australia) and Marie Claire Lifestyle (Australia), Vogue Entertaining and Travel and Vogue Living.

DB : So Nessa....I have to do a blog. I want to interview you about your new job as editor of Martha Stewart Weddings. Maybe talk about how it's been going and how it's different from your previous position as creative director of Real Simple... you know.... what it's like.  What do you say??? I loved talking to you at our lunch. C'mon Aussie!
VH : G'damn demanding moose-huntin' trout-fishin' hockeystick swingin' Molson-swillin' Canuck. Of course, anything for you. Does this mean we get to have a cocktail?
Cocktail sounds good, but I was thinking back and forth e-mailin'--no hockey! Cocktails later, but would love to see you soon.

Best,
Your "Eh" talkin', beaver trackin', rye on the rocks swillin' and in general f'in' awesome Canuckin.'
Deb

P.S. Fit that on your big rock, koala lovin', Foster swillin' crock huntin' Dundee.
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Posters With a Punch

Posters With a Punch

Designers   09.09.08   posted by Don Morris

For inspiration with a shot of adrenalin, check out "Modern Dog: 20 Years of Poster Art (not canine-related)." Robynne Raye and Mike Stassburger, the principals at Seattle-based Modern Dog, have been breaking design molds since 1987. This book, beautifully displaying 226 posters, is a testament to their unwavering energy and creativity.


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(Not So Rubber-) Necking

(Not So Rubber-) Necking

Designers   09.08.08   posted by Nathalie Kirsheh

Despite prolonging an already long drive, one of my absolute favorite things to do on a road trip is to stop along the way for anything that catches my attention (i.e. farmer's markets, yard sales, unique shops.) 
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"The Stranger" Cover Archive

Design   08.14.08   posted by Robert Newman

One of my favorite online publication site trends is the creation of cover and issue archives. So I was very happy to find that the complete collection of Entertainment Weekly covers is now available on their website as part of a complete issue archive. There are over 1,000 covers, art directed by Michael Grossman, John Korpics, Geraldine Hessler, current DD Brian Anstey, and even a couple years art directed by myself. This is very cool stuff, some amazing photography, and it's fun to see how the EW cover has evolved over the years. It's also a wonderful snapshot of popular culture since 1991.
Even better, The Stranger, the alternative weekly based in Seattle, has posted the last 10 years of their covers. The Stranger covers are like the cool punk version of The New Yorker, with illustrations, photographs and graphic design that are stand-alone visual statements, with lots of attitude and passion. Like The New Yorker, The Stranger covers are the visual voice of the publication, a dialogue each week between the paper and its readers.
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Destination: DestinAsian

Destination: DestinAsian

Design   08.14.08   posted by Gretchen Smelter

I was first introduced to DestinAsian magazine about four years ago, when I was with a  photographer friend in Bali, and we had dinner with the editor-in-chief, Christopher Hill. Based in Jakarta, the Asian luxury travel and lifestyle magazine is quite hard to find in the States unless you go to a really on-top-of-it international magazine store, but it is all the rage in big cities across Asia, and well-represented in the SPD design annual.
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