Coverage – June 2015

The latest monthly overview of arrivals we couldn’t quite fit into our schedule includes publications from Hong Kong, Hawaii, Australia, Ireland and the US.

Riposte
The fourth issue of the ‘Smart Magazine for Women’ delivers another satisfying collection of inspirational women. Highlights include a celebration of age and experience, illustrated by Rebecca Clarke, and an interview with MoMA’s Paola Antonelli. There’s also a great piece about raising boys. The visual language is simple but effective, beautifully- paced throughout and makes great use of print and paper. If you want to get a copy that includes the (explicit) Anonymous Sex Journal insert, order direct from the magazine.
ripostemagazine.com

Eirways
History, culture, academia and migration all figure in this new magazine published from rural Maine, Eire. If any country can sustain a magazine about their diaspora it’s Ireland, and this new magazine celebrates Irishness well.
eirways.com

Alquimie
The fifth issue of this heavyweight Australian paean to wine (mainly) continues it’s knowledgeably detailed and visually elegant overview of its subject. Expect the science of hops, the social value of wine and a tasting of Noerthern Rhone reds among its 154 thick pages.
alquimie.com.au

Umbrella
There’s nothing like a stark close-up of a modern building on the cover of an architecturally-inclined magazine. The twelfth issue of the ‘style, cities, design and culture’ publication is Umbrella’s second print version - the first ten were published online via issuu. Inside the newly matte pages: articles on summer style in cities, reviews of restaurants from around the world, and a dense illustrated map of London.
umbrellamagazine.co.uk

The Holborn
The second print spin-off from the website of the same name benefits from more pages (112) and beautiful cover art from Assa Ariyoshi. Covering craft and quality, the magazine is split into different rooms for different content – The Workshop, The Wardrobe, The Library and so on – but is otherwise let down by a lack of variation and pace to the pages.
theholbornmag.com

Four & Sons
The third issue of the magazine for dog-lovers continues to include high-calibre imagery, with plenty of moody photographs of hounds that are as detailed as a 19th Century oil painting of a hunting expedition. There’s plenty of frivolity and fun too, with pups dressed in panama hats and buttoned up shirts also filling the pages. Snoopy, David Lynch, hound-headed humans and a legendary Tokyo groomer are just a handful (or pawful) of the characters showcased inside. It’s a magazine-y antidote for anyone who wasn’t that convinced by Puss Puss or Cat People.
fourandsons.com

Drink Factory
‘Can taste be silent? Can flavour be a metaphor?’ These two ambiguous and beguiling questions are proposed by issue one of Drink Factory, which takes ‘Silent Neon Flowers’ as its mysterious theme. The collective who produce the magazine is made up of a group of like-minded bartenders from East London, who share their knowledge of cocktails and collaborate with chefs, perfumers and designers to push the boundaries of their craft to strange and unknown corners. Drink Factory is the product of their research, a magazine that is white and sparse with brightly photography, all of which evoke a kind of laboratory. Each page showcases a different recipe concocted by the collective, which is usually made from petals or flower stalks. The publication combines the clinical with the organic in a way that leaves a strange, yet memorable, taste in your mouth.
thedrinkfactory.com/mag

Pickles
Football mag Pickles has one eye on the score and the other on illustration. Independent sports magazines tend to rely heavily on photography, so Pickles’ approach is unique in that respect. The combination of carefully curated words, bold colours and unexpected cartoons makes the publication at the top of its game. Highlights include an interview with professional footballer Lianne Sanderson and a thought-piece on what it means to take an opposing side.
picklesmagazine.co.uk

IEEE Spectrum
Strong editorial design can turn up in the most surprising places sometimes, this being a case in point. Published in the US by a professional body for electricians, it is a smartly prepared publication that flatters its content with strong typography and decent photography.
spectrum.ieee.org

Gayletter
The sunny, soft cover image of New York-based Gayletter is compelling, and when combined with the masthead and border, the overall publication almost looks like retro summer annual. The magazine is a soft-hued but also visually bold celebration of gay culture, and the pages showcase various gay men in the creative industries. Inside, shoots and layout are pared-down and breezy, with occasional sprinklings of hot pink to keep you surprised.
gayletter.com/magazine

Shelf Heroes
Issue two means we’re on letter B, illustrators and writers recording their responses to movies beginning with that letter. A lovely mix of subjects and styles, now with added colour. Altogether now: The Birds, Brazil, Barton Fink, Bill & Ted…
shelfheroes.com/

Drift
Drift is a magazine about coffee, with each new issue exploring the caffeine rituals of a different city. Their first issue centred around New York, and volume two visits the cosplay cafes, vending machines and classic kissatens of Tokyo.
driftmag.com

First Love
The cover’s combination of a nude pink spine and a photograph of spikey green shrubbery make for a beautiful first impression. First Love is a magazine/ ‘zine for ‘everyday cool girls around the world’, and it’s put together by Hong-Kong based lifestyle and fashion blogger Denise Lai. Issue two explores skincare, sandwiches, bloggers and K-Pop.
firstlove.hk

Cool Brother
This music zine is well designed and ambitious, if it can maintain momentum it promises an exciting future. It’s design, presentation and writing are all tuned to Fun.
coolbrother.co.uk/

Flux
The quarterly lifestyle magazine from Hawaii focuses on the local art and culture. Inside you’ll find articles on ice-cream haunts, reviews of restaurants, thought pieces on the meaning of electronic identity, and an exploration of different signs plastered around Hawaii.
fluxhawaii.com

Splash and Grab
Bi-annual photography magazine Splash and Grab is produced by a group of graphic design and photography graduates who decided to band together to combat the unpaid or underpaid creative jobs market. They use the magazine platform to showcase emerging image-makers from around the world, a concept that is a bit like Intern, but with a purely photographic emphasis.
splashandgrab.tictail.com

Poppy
Made by the same folk who produce food magazine Hot Rum Cow, Poppy is a Scottish business magazine that also publishes its articles on Medium. The publication aims to consider money making from the creative point of view. Inside issue two: a piece on the impact of 3D printing on future business ventures, how an American entrepreneur learned his secrets from a group of monks, and an in-depth study of the problem of digital distraction in the office.
readpoppy.com

Bonafide
I hadn’t seen this urban music title since it was a tiny sub-A5 publication; now a far more substantial format allows photography and type to have a stronger presence and make the result a far more satisfying experience.
bonafidemag.com