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Näkemiin Kasino A4

That’s ‘Goodbye Kasino A4’. The final issue arrived in the post last week. This regular package from Helsinki is usually a cause for celebration. Kasino A4 was one of the first new magazines I featured on magCulture when the site launched in early 2006, and was an inspiration to keep the site going at the time. Every issue has been featured here, and it was great to meet the team behind the magazine at Colophon2007 and later invite them back to exhibit at Colophon2009. So, with the package this time containing the final issue, there’s a certain sadness to this post, the last one, about the magazine.

Thankfully that sadness is tempered with relief that the issue is a great finale. For the first time, the magazine is perfect-bound, with a glossy marble-effect cover, a foil block logo and a varnished message reading ‘This is the time to say it was fabulous, but it’s all over now’. The introduction expands on this, promising ’the most fun funeral you will ever attend’. A promise it delivers on. Always carrying a melancholic air, the funereal mood is a perfect one for Kasino A4. There are some highlights from previous issues but most of the content is new, and typically odd.

Which means… an interview with Finnish design hero Eero Aarnio; a food shoot featuring poisonous meals; a fashion shoot using hangovers as a theme; a piece about the clean up of the Helsinginkatu district of Helsinki. It does that thing that the best maagzines do – surprises the reader. The spread below is representative. ‘Snapshot’ is a series of spreads featuring young creative talent from Finland. The headline is subheaded ‘Snapshot is a series in which Kasino A4 hypes up and emerging talent. And watches them fail.’ Made me laugh, anyhow.

The closure is a major loss, but Jonathan, Pekka and Jussi deserve congratulations for ending on a high. They’re planning a new venture next year so watch this space.