by MediaSlut (@MediaSlut) My choice of the best international and local magazine covers in MagLove this week:
- Dear.
- Oxford American
- ELLE Singapore (Special Collector’s Edition: The Birthday Issue)
- The Look Book
- ELLE LUXE Italy
- Eat Out
- DESTINY
Find a cover we should know about? Tweet us at @Marklives and @MediaSlut.
Want to view all the covers at a glance? See our MagLove Pinboard!
INTERNATIONAL
Dear., Issue #3
Dear. is a Korean magazine, based in Seoul, which focuses on the “fashion production industry and small trader and enterprises in Korea” which “listen to the voices of the people who have quietly but diligently worked for the Korean fashion industry” when they visit these factories.
Doesn’t sound very appealing to many, I know; it almost sounds like a gossip and Union magazine mixed together, but for factory workers.
But with this cover treatment, I think it looks great and very interesting, and a lot of B2B titles can really learn from Dear.! Its previous covers are just as creative and smart…
Oxford American, November 2013
Oxford American, a quarterly literary magazine featuring “the best in Southern writing while documenting the complexity and vitality of the American South”, has gone old-school with a great execution in celebration of its “Southern Music Issue”.
Some cool detail went into this cover and its design elements.
ELLE Singapore, December 2013
The Singapore edition of ELLE seems to be celebrating it 20th anniversary, but not like ELLE Denmark, which celebrated its birthday by placing model Louise P. on five different covers…
ELLE Singapore has gone the ‘fun’ route by breaking the mould through not placing any model on its cover but instead using what seems like little Minion-inspired fashion characters.
I’m not familiar with this market at all, but my gut is telling me that this leap might be a bit too big from its normal covers. Hopefully, its normal readers will recognise the brand, and not think it’s a teenage magazine… But it’s bold and fun, and I like it.
The Look Book, Issue #2
My holiday is officially 10 work-days away, so I’m constantly daydreaming and “wishing I were there already”.
This cover from The Look Book speaks directly to me, for a number of reasons: the typography, humour, visual appeal, and the dream factor.
Less really is more on most covers, and I sometimes wish some of our South African titles would catch on…
ELLE LUXE (Italy), December 2013
Another ELLE cover that is breaking the mould and not placing a personality (dressed in high fashion) on the cover.
I’m not sure who the designer of the drawing is, but I like the simple drawing, typography, and end result of the cover.
LOCAL
Eat Out, 2014
If you’re familiar with the annual Eat Out Magazine (I call it my Restaurant Bible), you would know that it’s had a wide range of different types of covers over the past few years (you can view them all here), ranging from profile shots (2011) to a collage with items you use to eat/drink (2012) to golden leeks made to look like a trophy (2013).
But the best out of all of them, and the latest 2014 issue, is the cover with Chef Luke Dale-Roberts with a fish draped on his shoulder, and water splashes!
This striking image and cover coincides with a new look to the magazine and website (to launch next week), and with the “Bold New Look” campaign that is currently being aired. The extended TV ad is a must-watch!
DESTINY, December 2013
As a Christmas present to its readers, it seems as if DESTINY magazine has given them the best and most beautiful possible cover, with the stunning Lira!
It’s not just the amazing photography, where she looks ultra-hot and ultra-sexy; it’s also the little pink splash-over colour which adds to the success of this cover.
Lira talks about her “multi-million-Rand business” but I think she actually looks a multi-million-Rands on this DESTINY cover…
MagLove by @MediaSlut is a regular slot featuring the best local and international magazine covers every week, recognising well thought-out, powerful and interesting (and hopefully all three-in-one) covers and celebrating the mix of pragmatism, creativity and personal taste that created each of them. The (for now anonymous) blogger behind MediaSlut knows way too much for his own good about media in South Africa, magazines in particular. His mission is to show when SA magazines fail but, most importantly, also when they succeed. If you’re looking for a library about SA magazines and news, this is your one-stop pitstop.
Find a cover we should know about? Tweet us at @Marklives and @MediaSlut.
Want to view all the covers at a glance? See our MagLove Pinboard!