A Fine Thanks

Last week I attended what I thought was going to be a retrospective exhibit of 10 years of editorial and design excellence at Metropolis magazine. As a relatively new New Yorker, and a long-time fan of the magazine's creative director, Criswell Lappin, I was excited to be invited to such a distinguished affair.

As usual, I didn't read the fine print on the invitation. When I arrived at the event, held at a Mohawk flooring showroom in Chelsea, I quickly grabbed my complimentary cocktail and began to wander the room, ready to be inspired by the remarkable work typical of the magazine. But there wasn't any.

Only the current issue, randomly scattered about on window sills and tables, was on display. I quickly realized, as the attendees were summoned to gather in the center of the room, that this was not a retrospective, at least not the kind I'd expected.

What I had been invited to was better than that. It was essentially a 'thank you' party thrown by Metropolis publisher Horace Havemeyer III and editor-in-chief Susan Szenasy for their senior staff--Martin Pedersen, executive editor; Paul Makovsky, editorial director; Criswell Lappin, creative director; and Kristi Cameron, senior editor--for their 10 prolific years of collaborative brilliance.

Joining the celebration were none other than magazine royalty George Lois (that guy again!--Ed.) and Steven Heller, who came to toast the magazine for which they share a deep respect and affection.

We've been in the publishing doldrums for most of this decade, where for many of us experimentation and creativity (not to mention raises and decent budgets) have become a distant memory. Which explains why this simple act of thoughtfulness held so much power for me.

That Metropolis--not exactly the most deep-pocketed of magazines--felt such gratitude for the hard work of their dedicated team that they would raid the petty cash drawer and make a night of it for themselves and a few hundred guests, defiantly turning a blind eye to today's penny-pinching realities...

Thank you, Metropolis, for saying 'thanks.'