MarkLives.com runs a regular slot featuring the best local and international magazine covers every week. We recognise well thought out, powerful and interesting (and hopefully all three in one) magazine covers and celebrate the mix of pragmatism, creativity and personal taste that created each of them. By media bloggerMediaSlutZA.
Here’s the latest trends taking off in the magazine world; going retro/vintage in cover design. From fashion to décor & interiors have gone retro but but magazines are only now feeling comfortable enough now to play around with it as a design concept. And they’re definitely doing it well.
INTERNATIONAL
Newsweek, 26 March 2012 (or 1965)
Newsweek fans immediately noticed something is odd on this cover, but on a closer inspection, I believe this is probably one of the best and smartest cover executions in a long time. Newsweek has dedicated their whole special double-issue of 26 March 2012 to the Mad Men-era of 1960’s (to celebrate the launch of Mad Men’s 5th season). They have ‘recreated the sleek, iconic look of the magazine during the swinging ‘60s, but with all original content.’ Even the advertisers played along, and recreated their ads in the 1960s style! It’s worth picking up a copy just to view the ads. For more details see BreakingCopy.com.
GQ Style, Spring/Summer 2012 (UK Edition)
GQ Style magazine created a cover with the retro-looking Channing Tatum for their Spring/Summer 2012 issue and showing off some retro clothes in a shoot in the magazine.
LOCAL
By (Supplement to Die Burger, Beeld & Volksblad), Saturday 24 March 2012
I know that the By-supplement to the Afrikaans newspapers isn’t a magazine in the traditional sense, but it deserves recognition for being one of the first publications in South Africa to catch up with the retro trend. If you know the Mark Condor books, and all those other little A5 photo-story-books, you will also agree that this front-page is really smart and well-targeted.
NewsNow, 29 March 2012
Sometimes weekly news magazine NewsNow get their covers right, and sometimes just plain wrong. This one falls into the “right” category! The visuals are really strong, smart, and work well with the “It’s getting HOTTER” headline.
rooi rose, April 2012 (70th Birthday issue)
For a magazine to turn 70 in today’s competitive and economically tough environment and is a fantastic milestone! rooi rose magazine is celebrating their 70th issue with the April 2012 issue, with a very bright and striking pink cover, and they also have a 2-page-gatefold that features some stunning (Afrikaans) South African woman who are each dressed in a specific style each era since rooi rose’s start. A great accomplishment and a great celebratory issue!
– The (for now anonymous) blogger behind MediaSlutZA knows way too much for his own good about media in South Africa. Magazines in particular. His mission is to show when South African magazines might fail, but most importantly, succeed. If you’re looking for a library about South African magazines and news, your one-stop pitstop is MediaSlutZA. #MagazinesForTheWin
– Find a cover we should know about? Tweet us @marklives and @mediaslutza