September 2020
Our monthly overview of recent arrivals worthy of note includes magazines dedicated to cannabis, cycling and climate change.
Crumble #5
The fifth issue of the architecture magazine based at Edinburgh University sees a new team honouring the project’s past while pushing it forward. The two-colour Risographed pages jump from inter-generational memories of the London Underground to activist architecture, encompassing different meanings of the theme, ‘Movement.’ Don’t be fooled by the delicate presentation: this mag delivers strong thought and opinion.
crumblemag.com
Worms #2
Another Risograph produced mag, this time with less colour, continues to celebrate women writers and literature. The issue addresses Revolting Women, the mix of essays, interviews and fiction covering alternative library filing systems, Bjork’s ‘Vespertine’ album and a look at female writing in the digital age by Olivia Sudjic. It also features Hannah Hoch, the rare female Dadaist.
wormsmagazine.com
Lunch Lady #20
The Australian food and family zine goes from strength to strength. With its familiar Memphis-esque graphics, it continues to cover its beat convincingly while the number of ads suggest its’s becoming ever more strong commercially. In this issue: how to talk to your kids; make your own dominoes; and a look at modern playgrounds.
hellolunchlady.com.au
Icarus Complex #2
Launched last year, this biannual presents well-researched, powerful reports from across the spectrum of climate change. We hear voices from across the globe ranging from tech specialists to grassroots campaigns such as a group of Tunisian farmers whose crops are jeopardised by rising water levels. Uncomfortable but vital reading that reminds us of the power of print. icaruscomplexmagazine.com
Source #102
A recent redesign drew our attention to this Belfast-based photography mag. The new look seems to have reinvogorated the whole endeavour. Photography is well-covered from a visual standpoint in so many magazines, and here we have portfolios and a graduate supplement. But Source also provides accessible opinion and analysis of the form: an overview of how fashion mags have dealt with the pandemic; the use of photographs to unlock language in care homes; a fascinating day in the life of a hotel photographer, which ties nicely with a magazine like Scenic Views and it’s love for the everyday.
source.ie
Pipette #7
The magazine of natural wines continues its international trawl for stories. While the BLM cover may at first appear a little trite – what does this have to do with wines? – the intro note highlights the way natural wines have become big business and thus their radical roots are being questioned. Later, Sydney Love’s feature about wine and race clarifies the link more tightly. The cover is more than backed up by the issue, a fascinating development for a subject easily pigeonholed as lifestyle.
pipettemagazine.com
BrandD #49
This issue of the Hong Kong design mag is devoted to one person, illustrator Paul Cox. Effectively a monograph of his beautiful child-like work, the issue describes the editor’s increasing obsession with his work and the process by which the issue come about. If you like his work –we love it – it’s a must have.
Kajet #4
This magazine from Romania has established a strong voice for the eastern edge of Europe, and its latest theme ‘On Periphery,’ gives a tight focus on the subject. Essays and reportage challenge traditional cultural Western-orientated history. It’s beautifully designed by London studio Regular Practice, which can be seen either as great example of east-west collaboration or a curious example of the western reach the magazine criticises.
kajetjournal.com
Gossamer #5
The growth in the legal use of cannabis in the US has seen a new genre of magazines appear, of which Gossamer is the glossiest. Themed ‘Flower,’ the issue was intended for publication in March but only appears now since its cheery outlook didn’t seem appropriate back in Spring. And it is a rich, happy thing full of colour and graphic effect. This is drug use as lifestyle: fashion, food, honey, peyote and even a little gardening advice.
gossamer.co
Dropped #1
With the huge growth in bicycle sales during the Covid era, it’s perhaps surprising we haven’t seen more bike mags launched. This one arrives with a series of personal stories of cycling, promoting the idea of exploration and self-improvement via the activity. Both racing and commuting feature in what is a promising start.
droppedmag.com
All magazines available from the magCulture Shop