Project Three: Editorial Design

Build on your knowledge of grids from Type One, in the design of a magazine article.

objectives

• Select content to integrate with your own visual assets (if applicable) for a cohesive visual language, while also responding to specific contexts

• Organize complex information in a consistent grid

• Develop an engaging and dynamic reading experience using the grid that responds to specific contexts

description

Explore the grid, hierarchy, composition and the control of complex elements through the design of a 3 spread (6 individual pages) magazine article. Your content will be a found article (or something written by you) relating to a non-studio arts course that you are currently taking or have previously taken. Your visual content may be a combination of found imagery and visual assets you create. 

process overview (details to be posted daily to the course blog)

1. Content Research. Using your external course subject matter, find existing magazine articles, book essays, online articles, or self-written copy. While searching consider separate threads of information that may be useful in the article. An article can contain a main text as well as a subtext running through it. Also consider the breakdown of information within the article, among many elements, you will be required to use subheads in your version, and these can be self-authored to support your theme. Also gather images that relate to or support the article content. I recommend finding: photographs, illustrations, diagrams, etc.

2. Form Research: in class exercise. Find and purchase a magazine, content is irrelevant, but, its design must inspire you in some way. Is the layout beautiful, elegant, ugly, bold, rigid, chaotic? The magazine should not be a “picture-book” or textless, we are looking for text and image, happily cohabiting. Draw the underlying grid structure in a multi-spread article from your found magazine. You can draw on top of a photocopy of your article or on transparency overlays. Define the page edges, margins, columns, rows and gutters. Include both left and right pages as a single spread. On a second sheet try to define the content elements of the article, including headlines, intro, pull quotes, sidebars, captions, subheads, body copy, folios, graphic elements & images.

3. Design. Process to be discussed.