Grids: SpeakEasy Archives

Game Changers: An evening with David Moretti.

SpeakEasy 10.24.14 posted by The Editors

You know his work, you want to BE him, let's admit it! Join us on November 19th for a night with David Moretti, Creative Director of WIRED Italia, designer of this year's SPD Annual, and the CD whose work has upped the ante for great editorial and infographics design. David will explain how he and his team "use WIRED Italia to drive new and disruptive ideas and concepts, to show a vision through the living example of innovators, scientists, researchers..."

...and, yeah, he will show great work. So get your tickets now for what promises to be a sold out event!

Wednesday November 19th

The Helen Mills Theatre

137 West 26th Street

Doors open at 6:30 pm for seating. Presentation begins at 7:00pm

get your tickets after the jump....

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How to F***Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: 13 Esquire Contents Pages

SpeakEasy 11.19.13 posted by The Editors

Wednesday, November 20 at the Helen Mills Theater in NYC, the Society of Publication Designers is presenting its latest SpeakEasy, How to F*** Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: An Evening with David Curcurito, Design Director of Esquire & Friends.

In addition to Curcurito, Esquire art director Stravinski Pierre and photo director Mike Norseng will also join in to, as Curcurito says "give insight into what it truly takes to give Esquire its unique look and feel."

Leading up to next Wednesday's speakeasy, SPD is presenting a series of Esquire page designs and images selected from Curcurito & Company's very impressive body of work. One of the signatures of the current Esquire design has been the way that the art and edit team have reworked and reimagined traditional front-of-book pages, including the TOC and letters to the editor. Here we've got a baker's dozen of our favorite (and very imaginative) Esquire contents pages from the past eight years.

(Above): March 2008

Wednesday, November 20th

Helen Mills Theater

137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th)

Doors open at 6:30pm and the presentation starts at 7pm.

SPD Members: $15 in advance ($20 at the door - CASH ONLY)

General Admission: $30 in advance ( $35 at the door - CASH ONLY)

Eventbrite - How to F***Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: An Evening With David Curcurito, Design Director of Esquire & Friends

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How to F***Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: 13 Esquire Features

SpeakEasy 11.18.13 posted by The Editors

Wednesday, November 20 at the Helen Mills Theater in NYC, the Society of Publication Designers is presenting its latest SpeakEasy, How to F*** Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: An Evening with David Curcurito, Design Director of Esquire & Friends.

In addition to Curcurito, Esquire art director Stravinski Pierre and photo director Mike Norseng will also join in to, as Curcurito says "give insight into what it truly takes to give Esquire its unique look and feel."

Leading up to next Wednesday's speakeasy, SPD is presenting a series of Esquire page designs and images selected from Curcurito & Company's very impressive body of work. Here we've got a baker's dozen of our favorite Esquire features from the past eight years.

(Above): Designer: Darhil Crooks, photographer: Jean-Pierre Khazem

Wednesday, November 20th

Helen Mills Theater

137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th)

Doors open at 6:30pm and the presentation starts at 7pm.

SPD Members: $15 in advance ($20 at the door - CASH ONLY)

General Admission: $30 in advance ( $35 at the door - CASH ONLY)

… MORE

How to F***Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: An Evening With David Curcurito, Design Director of Esquire & Friends

SpeakEasy 11.14.13 posted by The Editors

Wednesday, November 20th

Helen Mills Theater

137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th)

Doors open at 6:30pm and the presentation starts at 7pm.

SPD Members: $15 in advance ($20 at the door - CASH ONLY)

General Admission: $30 in advance ( $35 at the door - CASH ONLY)

November 20th Speaker Series: Get Your Tickets Now!

SpeakEasy 11.12.13 posted by The Editors

How to F***Up a Perfectly Fine Magazine and Look Good While Trying: An Evening With David Curcurito, Design Director of Esquire & Friends

Wednesday, November 20th

Helen Mills Theater

137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th)

Doors open at 6:30pm and the presentation starts at 7pm.

SPD Members: $15 in advance ($20 at the door - CASH ONLY)

General Admission: $30 in advance ( $35 at the door - CASH ONLY)

November 4th Speaker Event: Video in Publishing, Keep Your Magazine Moving!

Speaker Series 10.29.13 posted by The Editors

The magazine evolution will be televised! Join us for a panel discussion with today's top talent on:

• Bringing it all to life with the integration of print and video

• Lights, camera, action...and audio: an experts' how to

• Squeezing the most out of your 30 second short

• Creative solutions to small screen and budget challenges

• Doing it all without an outrageous download time

... plus so much more!

… MORE

SPD Speaker Series: Introduction to ADOBE Creative Cloud

SpeakEasy 05.24.13 posted by The Editors

Many of us already use Adobe Digital Publishing Suite to produce content for iPhones, iPads and Android tablets. As of next month, Adobe changes everything with its new Creative Cloud, including new ways to share content, add interactivity and deploy fonts. Learn from Adobe's Worldwide Evangelist Terry White, fresh off his keynote presentation at Adobe MAX, and Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design how the newly reshaped Creative Cloud presents new opportunities for designers to express themselves creatively with enhancements to InDesign CC and Photoshop CC and new tools like Edge CC and Muse CC.

SPD MEMBERS - FREE, FREE, FREE!
CLICK HERE (spd members only)

SPD members are admitted free, non-members pay $10, but everyone needs to register because seating is limited. The event takes place Wednesday, June 5 at Helen Mills Theater, 137-139 West 26th Street (between 6th and 7th). Doors open at 6:30pm and the presentation starts at 7pm. Don't miss out on this one-time opportunity to get a sneak peak at what's coming next for digital publishers!

Eventbrite - SPD Speakeasy: Adobe Creative Cloud

SPD Speaker Series "Food for Thought" Buy Your tickets NOW!

SpeakEasy 10.12.12 posted by The Editors

Are you a foodie? Or just a food magazine fan?

Join industry heavyweights:

Anabel Gondelies, Design Director, Food + Mobile, The Food Network,

Stephen Scoble, Creative Director at Food&Wine

Tanya Steel, Editor-in-Chief of epicurious.com,

and photographer Melanie Dunea

for a tasty discussion of the state of food publication brands in a multiplatform age.

Anabel is the CD for all of The Food Network's TV and mobile brands,

Stephen leads the charge at F&W, and Melanie's latest book, My Last Supper; The Next Course, was published by Rodale in 2011 as a follow up to My Last Supper, where she interviews and photographs celebrity chefs asking them about their last meal. They will take the stage Monday, October 29th, at Helen Mills Theater, to engage in a moderated discussion about the state of food publication brands and to take questions from the audience. And perhaps a few celeb chefs will show as well! Join us after the talk at an afterparty with free wine and treats, natch!

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News You Can Use: The Photos!

SpeakEasy 09.12.12 posted by The Editors

Thanks to photographer Thaddeus Rombauer for his great work documenting the SPD News you can use event, gallery after the jump...… MORE

"News You Can Use" Recap

SpeakEasy 09.11.12 posted by The Editors

SPD launched its 2012-13 Speaker Series last night with "News You Can Use," featuring the creative directors of TIME, Newsweek and Huffington in front of a full house at AOL/Huffington in New York City.

Visitors came from as far as Mexico to hear Josh Klenert of Huffington, Dirk Barnett of Newsweek Daily Beast (until the end of the week, when he becomes CD of The New Republic), D.W. Pine of TIME and Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design talk about the challenges of producing content for magazines, tablets, phones, websites and books on a weekly schedule. Arianna Huffington introduced the speakers and AOL provided the space and refreshments for a capacity crowd.

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"Breaking News You Can Use"

SpeakEasy 08.23.12 posted by Patrick Mitchell

We're three weeks from SPD's first Speaker Series event of the fall, "News You Can Use," spotlighting the fast-paced world of newsmagazines and the multitaskers who make print, websites, tablet and mobile apps come to life for TIME, Newsweek and Huffington. It is a world that spins so quickly that we already have some breaking news to report:

Dirk Barnett, Newsweek's CD, will be leaving the magazine to helm a redesign at The New Republic. His replacement at Newsweek will be Lindsay Ballant. In two years at Newsweek Dirk oversaw a redesign, several controversial covers and the launch of an iPad edition. His last day at Newsweek is September 14, four days after the SPD event, and he's agreed to share the stage with D.W. Pine of TIME, Josh Klenert of Huffington and Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design to give his perspectives on what it takes to put out a newsmagazine in 2012.

Don't miss it. The event will take place at AOL/Huffington Post, 770 Broadway. Tickets are FREE for members, and going fast.

10 Lessons from Huffington Magazine

SpeakEasy 08.20.12 posted by The Editors

Josh Klenert, former SPD president and head of UX and Design for The Huffington Post, provides 10 takeaway lessons from his first 10 issues of Huffington magazine here.

Josh will be on stage with the creative directors of TIME (D.W. Pine) and Newsweek (Dirk Barnett) and moderator Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design for the first SPD Speaker Series event of the new season on Sept. 10, called "News You Can Use." The event is FREE for members, $30 for non-members. Seating is limited; order your tickets here before they're gone.

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Speaker Series Begins with "News You Can Use"

SpeakEasy 08.10.12 posted by The Editors

Tickets are now available for the first Speaker Series event of the fall, "News You Can Use," scheduled Sept. 10.

We have three distinguished speakers -- D.W. Pine of TIME magazine, Dirk Barnett of Newsweek Daily Beast and Josh Klenert of Huffington Magazine -- to discuss their ever-changing responsibilities in the newsmagazine business. Their perspectives cover a broad gamut: a venerable newsmagazine that has published since 1923; another that changed hands recently and has been linked to reports about discontinuing its print edition; and a newcomer that exists only digitally and never had a print edition. Between them, these three CDs juggle magazines, apps and websites amid breaking news, Olympics coverage, and a presidential campaign that presents constant challenges.

The event will be moderated by Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design, whose studio has created apps and covers for TIME and Newsweek, including this week's TIME cover. The event will take place at AOL/Huffington Post, 770 Broadway.

Seating is limited, and admission is FREE for SPD members. Details here.

Save The Date: News You Can Use

SpeakEasy 07.17.12 posted by The Editors

This year's presidential campaign poses new challenges for news-magazines, tasked with presenting fast-changing election coverage and other news on a dizzying array of tablets and technologies that go beyond print. D.W. Pine of TIME, Dirk Barnett of Newsweek Daily Beast and Josh Klenert of Huffington magazine kick off this year's SPD Speaker Series on Sept. 10, sharing their strategies for designing news of all kinds for multiple platforms -- tablets, websites and print -- and taking questions from moderator Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design. The conversation continues afterward with an opportunity to network with the speakers and other attendeees. Details to come.

Speakeasy West: Unsung Heroes 5

SpeakEasy 04.26.12 posted by Nathalie Kirsheh

Los Angeles, we're coming back for more! Please join us Thursday, May 17 as our pals at Smashbox Studios, West Hollywood host us for another evening of creative collaborations and inspiration courtesy of this amazing line-up of top talents and unsing heroes.

Our stellar lineup of presenters includes: a keynote speaker and conversation with iPad Design Guru Joe Zeff, Gallerist Paul Kopeikin, Photography Agent Carol LeFlufy and Art Director Charlie Hess It's another night of Right Brain thinking on the Left Coast -- not to mention cocktails, delicious food and inspiration, so RSVP now to guarantee your place at the party!

Let's get down to business after the jump...
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Ten Takeaways from Take Me Out to the Ballgame Night

SpeakEasy 01.28.12 posted by The Editors

Joe Zeff, who moderated last week's Take Me Out to the Ballgame night at the Helen Mills Theater featuring Sports Illustrated's Christopher Hercik and ESPN's John Korpics, offers these takeaways:

1. Don't take yourself too seriously. As they say in sports, these guys are future Hall of Famers. Hercik and his team at SI practically invented the multimedia magazine, beginning with its forward-thinking You Tube video showing a tablet-based magazine before anyone even knew what a tablet was. Korpics himself has won more medals than most of the people in the room. Combined. (And that's saying a lot considering some of the people in the audience.) Yet the two remain modest and approachable, taking time from their busy schedules to prepare in-depth presentations and share their experiences on a rainy Thursday night in Manhattan. Their work is impressive, their humility even moreso.

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Ballgame Banter: SI's Christopher Hercik

SpeakEasy 01.18.12 posted by The Editors

Christopher Hercik, Creative Director of Sports Illustrated, and John Korpics, VP/Creative Director for Print and Digital Media at ESPN the Magazine, will share the stage January 26 to talk about their demanding jobs atop the world of sports. Both started their careers as magazine designers and evolved into much more, overseeing not only print but apps, websites, television and books. In advance of SPD's "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" event, both share their favorite sports moments:

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Ballgame Banter: ESPN's John Korpics

SpeakEasy 01.17.12 posted by The Editors

John Korpics, VP/Creative Director for Print and Digital Media at ESPN the Magazine and a featured speaker at SPD's "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" event later this month at the Helen Mills Theater, shares his favorite sports moments:

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Take Me Out to the Ballgame

SpeakEasy 12.19.11 posted by The Editors

The world of sports comes to the Helen Mills Theater next month for an SPD Speakeasy featuring two industry heavyweights: Chris Hercik, Creative Director of Sports Illustrated, and John Korpics, Vice President/Creative Director for Print and Digital Media at ESPN the Magazine. Hercik and SI helped start the tablet publishing revolution with its innovative demo video before the iPad was even announced. Hercik continues to inspire with interactive editions for tablets, browsers and smartphones and smart standalone apps like Sports Illustrated Football Rivals. Korpics is one of the industry's brightest stars, with two National Magazine Awards and an SPD Magazine of the Year Award from his runs at Entertainment Weekly, Esquire, InStyle and Fortune. He joined ESPN this fall to oversee The Magazine and provide an integrated vision for its editorial and photography teams across all platforms. The two will take the stage January 26 for a moderated discussion about their innovative brands and to take questions from the audience. RSVP today after the jump...

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Recap: Tablet Town Hall

SpeakEasy 11.11.11 posted by The Editors

Many thanks to Steve Hart from Adobe and Shawn Duffy from WoodWing for our amazing SPD Tablet Town Hall event last night at the Helen Mills Theater in Manhattan, where a capacity crowd had the opportunity to query experts from both companies about their tablet publishing offerings.

Some of the takeaways, as noted by moderator Joe Zeff of Joe Zeff Design:

The WoodWing-Adobe partnership creates a single standard for publishing magazines on the tablet. Adobe Digital Publishing System (DPS) enables content creators large and small to produce dynamic apps with minimal programming. WoodWing enhances that system by adding a way to manage content, distribute work among multiple users and enhance creativity through InDesign plug-ins that simplify complicated programming.

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

SpeakEasy 11.02.11 posted by The Editors

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.
… MORE

You Should Do This: Tablet Town Hall on November 10th

SpeakEasy 10.26.11 posted by The Editors

Apple's new Newsstand app is driving a surge in digital magazine downloads and subscriptions. Time Inc. is set to have every title on a tablet by the end of the year, and Hearst and Conde aren't far behind. Indie apps are thriving and seeking bigger and bigger audiences. What we're saying is: apps are here to stay, even as the business shakes everything up seemingly every week. On Thursday, November 10th, we're bringing together digital publishing experts from Adobe and WoodWing, along with all your questions and even more answers, to talk about what's new (and what's the same) for the ever-growing landscape of digital publishing: if you're currently working on Tablet editions, if you never have but you want to, if you want to know what you need to know, and quickly, or if you want to just figure out how to take your dream project to the top, this is the night for you. General admission tickets are now available after the jump: please join us for a great night of information and inspiration...
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These Guys Kick APPS: Wrap-Up

SpeakEasy 07.29.11 posted by Josh Klenert

A big thanks to everyone who came out to our Indie App night featuring speakers from WoodWing, Seven, TRVL and Joe Zeff Design.

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These Guys Kick APPS: Q&A (Part 3)

SpeakEasy 07.20.11 posted by Josh Klenert

The creative forces behind TRVL, Above & Beyond: George Steinmetz, PROJECT, The Final Hours of Portal 2 and more come together for one night in NYC to the SPD SpeakEasy--to inspire and inform, and give you the inspiration to kick some apps, too.

Leading up to our Tuesday, July 26, 2011 SpeakEasy at the Helen Mills Theatre, we've asked our four presenters a few questions on the State of Apps. Wrapping up our list of questions, we want to know:

How does user feedback inform your apps?

BONUS: We also asked our panel to name one essential app they use regularly--for business or pleasure.

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These Guys Kick APPS: Q&A (Part 2)

SpeakEasy 07.14.11 posted by Josh Klenert

The creative forces behind PROJECT, TRVL, Above & Beyond: George Steinmetz, The Final Hours of Portal 2 and more come together for one night in NYC to the SPD SpeakEasy--to inspire and inform, and give you the inspiration to kick some apps, too.

Leading up to our Tuesday, July 26, 2011 SpeakEasy at the Helen Mills Theatre, we've asked our four presenters a few questions on the State of Apps. Next on our list of questions, we want to know:

What advice do you have for print designers trying to move into app design?

… MORE

These Guys Kick APPS: Q&A (Part 1)

SpeakEasy 07.06.11 posted by Josh Klenert

The creative forces behind PROJECT, TRVL, Above & Beyond: George Steinmetz, The Final Hours of Portal 2 and more come together for one night in NYC to the SPD SpeakEasy--to inspire and inform, and give you the inspiration to kick some apps, too.

Leading up to our Tuesday, July 26, 2011 SpeakEasy at the Helen Mills Theatre, we've asked our four presenters a few questions on the State of Apps.

To kick things off, we want to know:

What has been your biggest challenge (or surprise) in developing your apps?

… MORE

The Story of O Rocks the House!

SpeakEasy 06.08.11 posted by The Editors

O magazine design directors Grace Lee and Robert Priest rocked the packed house at last night's SPD SpeakEasy. It was standing-room only as The Story of O kicked off with a rousing introduction from O magazine editor (and Oprah pal) Gayle King, followed by a video love letter from Oprah herself to Grace and Robert. The audience was then treated to a fast-paced hour of movies, slides, animation and much learning and inspiration. We hope to have both audio and a version of the presentation available here sometime in the near future.

The Story of O: Sold Out! Sign Up for the Waitlist

SpeakEasy 06.01.11 posted by Robert Newman

Yes, The Story of O SPD SpeakEasy on June 7 is now officially sold out. But if our past experience is any indicator, a certain percentage of ticketholders will not show up to claim their seats. So, if you really want to see The Story of O, but didn't get your ticket in time, we strongly suggest you sign up for the waitlist. You really should, because things happen, deadlines loom, plans change. And SPD is offering a special feature for our waitlist friends: As the presentation begins on Tuesday night (but before the speakers actually begin), we'll seat as many people as we can from the waitlist in place of unclaimed tickets. And best of all, the charge will be just 50% of the standard ticket price, because, let's face it, the odds aren't 100% in your favor. But some ticketholders are not going to attend, and you, the smart wait-lister, can swoop in and grab the goodies (aka, the empty seat).

You must be signed up on the SpeakEasy waitlist to be able to grab a seat at The Story of O. All non-wait-listers will be banished from the hall. (There's a few good places to nurse those wounds close by...)

Sign up for The Story of O waitlist here.

The Story of O, Part 4: iPad Pages

SpeakEasy 05.31.11 posted by Robert Newman

On Tuesday, June 7, SPD will present The Story of O, featuring design directors Robert Priest and Grace Lee talking about O, the Oprah magazine and the O iPad app. They'll be showing their redesign of the print product and discussing the launch of the app, all just days after the Oprah show goes off the air. It promises to be another great SPD Speakeasy filled with inspiration, learning, and lots of fun.

Over the past month we've presented samples from recent O work, both the print and digital versions. Our fourth collection is a series of pages from the O iPad app.

(Above): May 2011. Photograph by Dewey Nicks.

Tickets for The Story of O are ~~selling fast. The last SPD Speakeasy sold out, so get your tickets early!~~ currently sold to capacity. Please sign-up for the waitlist so we can work to be sure you have a chance to join us next week when rush tickets become available. Waitlist tickets available here … MORE

The Final Oprah Show: The Story of O

SpeakEasy 05.25.11 posted by Robert Newman

It's 4p EST and the final episode of Oprah is airing! Don't suffer withdrawal....you can attend the June 7 SPD SpeakEasy, The Story of O, and hear O magazine and app design directors Robert Priest and Grace Lee talk about creating visual magic at a storied brand. Tickets are selling fast! Get yours here.

Related Stories:
The Story of O: The Feature Section Openers
The Story of O: The Covers
The Story of O: Inside Pages

The Story of O, Part 3: Inside Pages

SpeakEasy 05.24.11 posted by Robert Newman

On Tuesday, June 7, SPD will present The Story of O, featuring design directors Robert Priest and Grace Lee talking about O, the Oprah magazine and the O iPad app. They'll be showing their redesign of the print product and discussing the launch of the app, all just days after the Oprah show goes off the air. It promises to be another great SPD Speakeasy filled with inspiration, learning, and lots of fun.

Over the next month we'll be presenting samples from recent O work, both the print and digital versions. Our third collection is a series of covers from the magazine.

(Above): October 2010. Photograph by Levi Brown.

Tickets for The Story of O are selling fast. The last SPD Speakeasy sold out, so get your tickets early! Tickets available here.… MORE

The Story of O, Part 2: The Covers

SpeakEasy 05.17.11 posted by Robert Newman

On Tuesday, June 7, SPD will present The Story of O, featuring design directors Robert Priest and Grace Lee talking about O, the Oprah magazine and the O iPad app. They'll be talking about their work redesigning the print product and launching the app, all just days after the Oprah show goes off the air. It promises to be another great SPD Speakeasy filled with inspiration, learning, and lots of fun.

Over the next month we'll be presenting samples from recent O work, both the print and digital versions. Our second collection is a series of covers from the magazine.

(Above): February 2011. Photograph by Ruven Afanador.

Tickets for The Story of O are selling fast. The last SPD Speakeasy sold out, so get your tickets early! Tickets available here.… MORE

The Story of O: The Feature Section Openers

SpeakEasy 05.10.11 posted by Robert Newman

On Tuesday, June 7, SPD will present The Story of O, featuring design directors Robert Priest and Grace Lee talking about O, the Oprah magazine and the O iPad app. They'll be talking about their work redesigning the print product and launching the app, all just days after the Oprah show goes off the air. It promises to be another great SPD Speakeasy filled with inspiration, learning, and lots of fun.

Over the next month we'll be presenting samples from recent O work, both the print and digital versions. Our first collection is a series of single-page feature well openers.

(Above): June 2011, illustration by Angela Riechers.

Tickets for The Story of O are selling fast. The last SPD Speakeasy sold out, so get your tickets early! Tickets available here.
… MORE

Businessweek the Movie (sort of)

SpeakEasy 04.28.11 posted by Robert Newman

One of the highlights (and there were many) of the Bloomberg Businessweek: Process presentation for the SPD Speaker Event last week, was the mini-movie they made about how the magazine is put together. If you missed the event, or if you were there and want to see it again, go to the next page and feast your eyes.

Thanks to Bloomberg Businessweek creative director Richard Turley and graphics director Jennifer Daniel for a highly entertaining evening.

Video after the jump....

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Speakeasy Flash Sale! A Few Extra Tickets for Bloomberg Businessweek

SpeakEasy 04.19.11 posted by The Editors

Over the weekend you may have noticed tickets for our Speakeasy on Thursday night with the creative team at Bloomberg Businessweek had sold out. We're happy to say we've been able to move the presentation to a slightly larger room at the Businessweek HQ, and we have a handful of tickets we can sell now -- only until 5pm Wednesday afternoon when sales must close, but that leaves you plenty of time now to click through and buy. It's like a Gilt sale for magazine hounds... … MORE

Bloomberg Businessweek: Process

SpeakEasy 03.31.11 posted by The Editors

An evening with CD Richard Turley and the visual team of Bloomberg Businessweek.

On Thursday, April 21st, please join us at the offices of Bloomberg Businessweek where Creative Director Richard Turley, Design Director Cindy Hoffman, Director of Photography David Carthas, Information Graphics Director Jennifer Daniels and the creative team behind the Bloomberg relaunch of Businessweek will take us behind-the-scenes for a look at work that is smart and serious, from a team that knows how magazines are made.

As our very own Bob Newman wrote in GRIDS back in November:

When Bloomberg Businessweek launched their redesign (and re-imagination) of the magazine at the end of April, the response from the publication design community was somewhat underwhelming. The first couple covers were solid but not remarkable, the insides were crisply formatted but a bit overstuffed, and the imagery had yet to find its full voice.

It's time to take another look. In the succeeding months, the new design has grown and matured into a remarkable visual package. Week after week, creative director Richard Turley and his crew are producing stunning covers and features, along with tightly formatted interior pages that rival New York for their texture, density, creativity, and attention to detail. This is state-of-the-art magazine design, with highly-original and intelligent photos, graphics, and illustrations. It's a look that fuses the formatting brilliance of New York and the smart visual approach of The New York Times Magazine, with a hierarchy and architecture lifted from the best British and European publications (the Guardian chief among them). Most impressively, Businessweek has a high level of visual intelligence, challenging its readers, pushing the boundaries of traditional newsweekly and business magazine design. ...

Tickets and all info after the jump... … MORE

SPDWest SpeakEasy: UNSUNG (Illustration) HEROES of the AMERICAN WEST

SpeakEasy 03.02.11 posted by The Editors

We hope you're in the LA area on Thursday, March 24th and can join us at Smashbox West Hollywood for another amazing gathering of the coolest creatives around, a night of Right Brain talent on the Left Coast, presented by Charlie Hess, Lisa Thackaberry and Carol LeFlufy. This time we have David Armario, Lou Beach, Jim Heimann, Brian Rea and InJu Sturgeon introducing some of the spectacular, unsung illustration talents they have spotted as the ones to watch. You'll be amazed at the work on display, not to mention you'll beef up your own rolodex with our Unsung Heroes and also the connections you'll make with the creatives in the audience. Cool inspiration, cocktails and homemade Mexican food, and an amazing group of people. All details and RSVP info after the jump... … MORE

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 7

SpeakEasy 11.02.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because he's just so cool....

Do not miss the tonight's SPD Speakeasy, featuring Albert Watson in conversation with Laurie Kratochvil, talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Christy Turlington, New York, 1990.

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 6

SpeakEasy 11.01.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because: Johnny Depp.

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Laurie Kratochvil in conversation with Albert Watson talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Johnny Depp, photographed for Details, 1993.

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 5

SpeakEasy 10.29.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because his photographs are cinematic....

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Laurie Kratochvil in conversation with Albert Watson, talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Tupac Shakur, 1991.

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 4

SpeakEasy 10.28.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because we love black and white...

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Laurie Kratochvil in conversation with Albert Watson talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): John Travolta, for Entertainment Weekly, 1994.

It's Albert Watson's World; We Just Live In It

SpeakEasy 10.28.10 posted by Robert Newman

On Tuesday, November 2nd, the SPD Speakeasy will feature a conversation with photo editor Laurie Kratochvil and photographer Albert Watson about Albert's latest books: Strip Search, a 10-year personal project shooting the life and lives of Las Vegas, and UFO: Albert Watson, a 40-year retrospective of Albert's work in fashion and celebrity portraiture.

We asked Greg Pond, who collaborated with Albert for many years as photography director of Details and Fortune, to share his thoughts on Strip Search and Watson in general.

Greg Pond: The great Scottish photographer Albert Watson once told me a story about the beginning of his career in the early 1970s. Having recently arrived in Los Angeles, Albert and his wife, Elizabeth, were broke, unknown, and trying to realize their American dream. An art director friend who worked on the Max Factor advertising account gave Albert a test shoot--his first job as a photographer. The AD loved the work and said he'd pay Albert for two pictures.

When the check arrived, Albert and Liz thought there had been some sort of mistake...

(Above): Fun City, Las Vegas, 2001, from Strip Search

… MORE

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 3

SpeakEasy 10.27.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because he takes the best rock and roll pictures....

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Albert Watson in conversation with Laurie Kratochvil, talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Nine Inch Nails, Woodstock, 1994.

Cat Got Your Tongue?

SpeakEasy 10.26.10 posted by The Editors

A week from today, Tuesday, November 2nd, join us at the SPD Speakeasy for a conversation with Laurie Kratochvil and Albert Watson about Albert's latest books: "Strip Search," a ten-year personal project shooting the life and lives of Las Vegas, and "UFO: Albert Watson ," a 40-year retrospective of Albert's work in fashion and celebrity portraiture. Get your tickets after the jump, and prepare for this reality: not everything stays in Vegas...

above: Breaunna from Albert Watson's book "Strip Search"
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Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 2

SpeakEasy 10.25.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because he takes the sexiest photographs of men and women.

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Laurie Kratochvil in conversation with Albert Watson talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Jennifer Lopez, photographed for Details, 1998. Design director: Robert Newman, photography director: Greg Pond.

Why We Love Albert Watson, Pt. 1

SpeakEasy 10.22.10 posted by Robert Newman

Because he photographed the preview issue cover of Vibe, featuring Treach of Naughty by Nature, and then did the first official issue cover after that (Snoop Dogg).

Do not miss the upcoming SPD Speakeasy on November 2, featuring Laurie Kratochvil in conversation with Albert Watson talking about his new book, Strip Search, and many more details of his career as an iconic magazine and fashion photographer.

(Above): Treach, from the Vibe preview issue cover. Design director: Gary Koepke, photo director: George Pitts.

LA LOVE: Highlights from Unsung Heroes 2

SpeakEasy 10.14.10 posted by The Editors

It's hard to believe, but just a week ago we were in Los Angeles for the second SPDWest Speakeasy of the year, meeting and reconnecting with over 100 extraordinary creatives working in the LA area. Thanks to the tremendous efforts of three superstars in Charlie Hess, Carol LeFlufy and Lisa Thackaberry, our great friends at Smashbox hosted us once again on their fabulous Stage 2, and City Kitchen hooked us up with delicious treats to go with our cocktails. With a little help from the delightful Betsy Winchell (not only a fantastic photographer, ladies and gentlemen, but whip-smart on the AV, thank god), we were ready to meet the Unsung Heroes of the night. A little sample of their work and some photos after the jump...

(image above courtesy of Juxtapoz)
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The 11th Reason to Visit L.A.

SpeakEasy 10.01.10 posted by The Editors

GQ had a feature in the September issue, 10 Reasons Why L.A. Is the Coolest City on the Planet, that started out, "The next trip you book should be to Los Angeles..." Like any good readers, we completely obeyed this command. (It's like they knew we were having our next Speakeasy event there!) So if you're in L.A. already, be sure to get your tickets for cocktails, delicious treats from City Kitchen and cool creatives introducing the work of their favorite, unsung hero photographers. And if you're not in L.A. yet -- maybe it's time to make a quick search on Hotwire to see if you can join us.... Tickets and info after the jump. … MORE

1000 Time Covers: Thinking Inside the (Red) Box

SpeakEasy 09.29.10 posted by Robert Newman

On Wednesday, October 27, Time art director Arthur Hochstein will be talking at an SPD Speakeasy about his greatest hits, favorite never-seens, and all the in-betweens that went into making over 1000 covers of the magazine. Longtime collaborator, artist Matt Mahurin, will introduce the night, and you'll walk away with a better sense of the secrets behind making a mass-market cover jump out from a crowded newsstand, and the power of the page. Don't miss out on this memorable evening; tickets are going fast! RSVP and buy your tickets here.

Paper to Pixels v2: Lessons from Last Night

SpeakEasy 09.23.10 posted by Josh Klenert

In what is hopefully the first of many events dedicated to the new world of the iPad and other tablets, Joe Zeff, D.W. Pine, Neil Jamieson, Michael Lawton and Peter Herbert shared their lessons learned in this new frontier.

A few thoughts that stood out to me:

Make It Happen

As D.W. Pine pointed out, don't think you're crazy making a mock-up of some rumored tech coming down the pike. It might happen, and if you're the one staring the conversation, you can lead a new path.

There Are No Experts.
We're all forging new paths with these new platforms and making things up as we go. Joe Zeff: "There are no rules. There are no paths."

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Paper to Pixels v2: Favorite Apps

SpeakEasy 09.20.10 posted by Josh Klenert

In advance of our first speaker series event dedicated to the iPad, we've asked our expert panel to submit their favorite apps. Here's a look at their fave design, news, and photo apps:

Design Apps

Flipboard

It's an interesting idea: taking web content and making it look like a designed magazine. hhhmmmm! -- D.W. Pine

Weather Station (free)

Clean simple info graphics..plus you get the weather. Also like:
Alice in Wonderland
-- Michael Lawton and Peter Herbert

Popular Mechanics
In my opinion the most successful magazine app on the iPad. The cells are beautifully composed, the diagrams and schematics are smart, entertaining and above all useful. The user experience is dynamic yet clear and the app is fun and easy to navigate. All this while maintaining brand consistency. --Neil Jameson

Fortune
John Korpics' clean, crisp design aesthetic is perfectly suited for the iPad. --Joe Zeff

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Paper to Pixels v2: Meet the Panel

SpeakEasy 09.13.10 posted by Josh Klenert

Coming up on Wednesday, September 22 at the Helen Mills Theater: Paper to Pixel v2: iPad Apps. Meet our panel and get your tickets now (after the jump)--they're going fast.

Neil Jamieson, People

When your brand generates a billion dollars annually and the print magazine has a circulation of over 3.5 million the challenges of creating an iPad version can be pretty daunting! Deputy Design Director Neil Jamieson explains how People launched their app from rough sketches to the app store in only 3 months. Thanks to lots of negotiation with Apple to get a game changing subscription model that makes the People app free to print subscribers the People app reached the dizzying heights of being #1 on iTunes' top free apps list for 2 whole weeks (suck it Pac Man!), and thanks to a seriously talented and hard working art department the People app continues to evolve week after week...with a little help from Katy Perry!

Michael Lawton and Peter Herbert, Popular Mechanics

Michael and Peter's involvement with tablets and e-ink technology began almost two years ago working on various top-secret prototypes for Hearst. In fact you could say that Popular Mechanics has become the R&D department for the publisher. PM is filled with tech geeks so if something new is coming out there's a good chance Michael (DD) and Peter (Senior AD) are building something for it. For the iPad, Hearst's directive from the start was to build an App entirely in-house with minimal staff increases, putting this tag team's hands in every part of the prototype.

D.W. Pine, TIME

How do you take an 86-year-old iconic brand and transform it into a youthful upstart? Design Director D.W. Pine will show us how TIME kept its mission of clean, visual storytelling while becoming one of the first publications to launch on the iPad--and how they manage to do it every week!

Joe Zeff, Joe Zeff Design

Joe and his studio, Joe Zeff Design, have been focused on the iPad since its announcement. They have partnered with Dr. Mario Garcia to advise publishing clients internationally on iPad development and Joe has spoken at the Poynter Institute of Media Studies on iPad business models for publishers, and integration strategies for mobile developers. The studio is working with Touch Press, publisher of The Elements, and PepsiCo on iPad projects, in addition to its robust portfolio of editorlal work, which includes app covers for TIME and Fortune.

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SPD@SMASHBOX LA: Shout-outs to our Unsung Heroes

SpeakEasy 07.16.10 posted by The Editors

Do you need a shot of visual inspiration this morning? We have just the solution.
A few weeks back we had the honor and the pleasure of hosting our first ever Speakeasy in LA at Smashbox Studios West Hollywood. "Unsung Heroes of the American West" put the spotlight on five photographers working in the LA area, each with a special perspective on the work they do, both commissioned and personal. Presented to the audience by an art director, photo editor or rep who is a big fan of their work, the rest of us were able to hear about their methods and challenges, ask our biggest questions, and leave at the end of the night as bigger fans of each of them. If you weren't able to join us, we can share the video portfolios that were created to introduce each photographer -- take a look after the jump...

Photos above: a sample from each of the five heroes featured after the jump -- Diana Koenigsberg, Betsy Winchell, Mathieu Young, Ted Soqui and Jill Greenberg.
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All's Creative on the Western Front

SpeakEasy 06.22.10 posted by The Editors

If you're in the Los Angeles area Wednesday night (the 23rd!) we hope you're also planning to join us for our first-ever SPD Speakeasy in the LA-area, "Unsung Heroes of the American West." We've got great people, fantastic, authentic Mexican food and delicious cocktails, and excellent presentations about working with the inspiring talent in LA -- all that's missing is your RSVP. Keep reading after the jump for info on some of our panelists, and to reserve your spot for tomorrow night...
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GINA BARNETT: Questions, Anyone?

SpeakEasy 03.24.10 posted by Gail Anderson

We hope we'll see you this Thursday night at Gina Barnett's Speakeasy at the Helen Mills Theatre. We've blogged, we've probed, and we've e-mail blasted. So log out, swipe your Metrocard and join us for an insightful evening that will get you thinking about how to navigate not just your current job, but maybe even the rest of your career.

I've tried to get the ball rolling by asking Gina some questions, and had a few more things that I'm hoping might come up on Thursday, as well...

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ARTFUL COMMUNICATION: Embracing Change

SpeakEasy 03.17.10 posted by Gail Anderson

No matter how talented we are, at some point, we all experience that "writing on the wall" moment, when we know that it's time to move on. Maybe it's downsizing, or a new editorial direction-or whatever-but it's something no one's immune to, especially not these days...

Part of Gina Barnett's role as a communications consultant is to help people deal with transitions. But more importantly, it's to encourage people to not cling too tightly to their own definitions of their jobs--or perceived roles. It's something Gina will be touching on at her SPD Speakeasy on March 25th at the Helen Mills Theatre. I asked her a few questions in preparation for this:… MORE

ARTFUL COMMUNICATION: Public Speaking (Ugh)

SpeakEasy 03.08.10 posted by Gail Anderson

Teaching presentation skills is actually a small part of Gina Barnett's practice. Most of her work is devoted to leadership presence and communication excellence. Gina works with a wide range of executives to identify their communication strengths and areas for growth. She helps them to recognize the unconscious habits that get in the way of their objectives, or that prevent them from building effective relationships.

But part of what Gina initially worked on with us at SpotCo was helping us hone our presentation skills. And with that in mind, I've asked her a few questions whose answers might prove useful to you, too:… MORE

ARTFUL COMMUNICATION: Gina Barnett

SpeakEasy 02.25.10 posted by Gail Anderson

I first met Gina Barnett a few years ago when she came to our office at SpotCo to help the senior managers work on presentation skills. While the president of our company is a natural and gifted orator who's at his most comfortable--and funniest--in large groups of clients, some of the rest of us, well... not so much. And that would be, including and especially me. I could speak to a conference of a thousand strangers without raising my blood pressure, but somehow feared that I was a fraud in front of small groups of people who are buying what we create.

Enter Gina Barnett.… MORE

TONIGHT: Paul Sahre has a present for you.

SpeakEasy 02.09.10 posted by Brandon Kavulla

Yep. Just for you. Tonight. After his talk at the Helen Mills Theater.
Paul has been doing a little spring cleaning as you can see and would like to pass the savings on to you.
"What could I get?" you ask?
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SAHRE + NYT

SpeakEasy 02.01.10 posted by Brandon Kavulla

Well as you may (or may not) know, Paul Sahre's Speak Easy talk is rapidly approaching next Tuesday, February 9th at The Helen Mills theater at 7 p.m.
While most are familiar with Paul's book covers and posters, he is also a regular contributor to The New York Times...and does some damn amazing work, from simple black and white letters illustrations to covers for the Book Review.
If you're already familiar, take a look and see what you might've missed!
If you've never seen, you're in for a treat.
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PAUL SAHRE: Alien abduction attempts, the hairless hand, dead pig heads, boring sex and eating the dinosaur.

SpeakEasy 01.26.10 posted by Brandon Kavulla

The one and only Paul Sahre will be kicking of SPD's spring speaker series on Tuesday, February 9th at the Helen Mills Theater.
According to Paul's site, he...
...is a graphic designer that works out of his own shitty office in New York City.
...received his BFA and MFA from Kent State and teaches at the School of Visual Arts.
...finds comfort in the fact that we are all hurtling through space.
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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

Time to Refuel?

SpeakEasy 09.28.09 posted by The Editors

The Speaker Series kicks off the Fall Season with Richard Wilde, who asks,

...in the course of our careers we lose sight of our essential nature and our work becomes more mechanically driven and we also lose sight of our original goal of being an artist. The question is, how do I make my work more vital, which will give meaning to my life?

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Modern Victore

SpeakEasy 12.09.08 posted by Brandon Kavulla

We are very happy to announce that James Victore (yes, of SPD Speakeasy fame) has just had a selection of his posters chosen for inclusion in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. Five of his pieces are included in the current and ongoing exhibition Rough Cut: Design Takes a Sharp Edge.
We're sure it's just a coincidence that James gets in the MoMA mere weeks after his Speakeasy. Please.
Join us in congratulating James!

James Victore Is A Sellout?

SpeakEasy 10.24.08 posted by Brandon Kavulla

Yep, James has indeed turned his back on the amazing social and political work that made him famous and is now doing what he said graphic design shouldn't do: sell socks.
At the Gap. He's there right now.

Ok, not really.
But what IS on the verge of selling out is James' Speakeasy talk next Monday evening.

For a sample of the shy and reserved man behind the work being considered for the Museum of Modern Art's permanent collection in November click here. (directed by Hillman Curtis).

James likes to think of graphic design as a club with spikes.
Come have a cocktail and see him use it Monday night at 7 p.m.!

UPDATED: Speakeasy Opening Night SOLD OUT

SpeakEasy 09.17.08 posted by Amid Capeci

Look at these 210 covers of The New York Times Magazine. Among these award-winners are solutions that Arem Duplessis didn't think worked although all were printed. Which ones? How do they do it every week? Why do they call it 'The Funny Pages'? After the newspaper gives you the headlines, The NYT Magazine puts news and ideas in context with amazing photojournalism, innovative type design, inspiring fashion and even comics.… MORE

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