Magazine of the Week: Perdiz #2

Two things make a good magazine – presentation and content. Many magazine will be good at one or the other, the best combine the two elements. Perdiz is one such magazine. Its second issue has just landed, promising further proof that ‘Happiness is Contagious’.

The issue will be easily recognisable to anyone who picked up the launch issue late last year. The same format is repeated, which is sound as it’s a strong one. Loose-stitched open binding (actually improved from issue 1) and a kaleidoscopic foil block title take good advantage of print and the bold use of colour is bright and appropriately happy. It looks and feels good.

Like many current independents, Perdiz is a magazine about people. It uses its basic theme – happiness – as an excuse to examine how different people live, and divides the content into long and short forms in an intelligent and well-paced manner. Despite being bilingual (it’s published from Barcelona in English and Spanish) it doesn’t feel cramped. Longer pieces don’t overstay their welcome and vary between being text-orientated and image-led (such as that above and below, about one man’s love of the sea and fishing).

The longer material is split up with pictorial spreads such as this collage of rainbow-based books covers by Kent Rogowski (above).

Plus there are briefer pieces of good news and a nicely put together illustrated list of ‘10 Things I changed to Improve My Life’ (above), with advice around managing email and travelling long haul.

There’s also a paeon to good grammar, well-illustrated by Raquel Gonzalez (above) that is a brave subject to deal with in two langauges at once. I can’t judge the Spanish but the English avoids mistakes.

Looking at these images, they don’t do full justice to the issue. Perdiz is a well-made and characterful magazine that hangs together as a whole – these pages are even stronger bound together.

Highly recommended.

(read my review of issue 1 here)

Perdiz #2 is currently available from the magCulture shop.