MAGCULTURE.COM / BLOG

032c no16

Having often written about 032c I finally met editor Joerg Koch while he was in London recently. We spoke about how his magazine has developed, including the recent spontaneous/ugly look, and he described further changes coming up in the next issue.

Well, the issue is here, and it’s taken another interesting turn. Art director Mike Meiré has retained elements of the distorted system fonts from the last two issues, but has calmed down the more extreme elements. At the same time the content has become far more vibrant and visually busy. There is a new delicacy to the typography but the imagery, colours and variations in pace have all been turned up several degrees.

The result is a stimulating magazine that is exciting for both its content and its presentation. It feels like it’s still in the middle of an ongoing transformation. Just where it will end is anybody’s guess but I for one will be watching to see what happens next.

I’m not featuring it here to re-start the debate about 032c; but for those, like me, who like it, here are some visual highlights:

A story about Dubai is presented in a suitably rye comic strip format.

A complete pictorial history of Steven Meisel’s front covers for Italian Vogue fills a 14-page throw out section.

Work by artist Elaine Sturtevant.

Hints of the clumsy typography remain, including this backwards running head.