Opinion
John L. Walters
For this issue, eleven prominent designers have generously given up time to talk about graphic design…
Features
Interview by John L. Walters
‘The role of printed matter has shifted from what it communicates literally to what it communicates subconsciously.’
Kathy Ryan
Each of Jack Davison’s portraits is a spontaneous dance with his subject, says New York Times Magazine photo director Kathy Ryan
Derek Yates
Dines’s Studio Blup represents a radical challenge to the monoculture that still dominates current design
Interview by John L. Walters
‘Since the outbreak of Covid-19, the world feels more united. This may be a trigger in the future for how we can be more unified and achieve results as a world collective.’
John L. Walters
A love of mathematics and geometry underpins the immaculate illustrations of Malika Favre
John-Patrick Hartnett
Kiel Mutschelknaus’s constantly evolving Space Type Generator has the power to hypnotise
Interview by John L. Walters
‘Online, everything arrives with equal weight … everything can have a logo, everything can have an identity, everyone can do it in an untutored way.’
Ferdinand P. Ulrich
Minjoo Ham’s charming heavyweight Hangul typeface, inspired by Korean movie posters, is now available in a Latin version
Interview by John L. Walters
‘We work in the entertainment world where there are always a lot of time pressures. It’s a priority to manage stress and make sure people are fulfilled.’
Silas Munro
‘As, Not For: Dethroning Our Absolutes’ is an itinerant exhibition of work by black designers whose legacy has been neglected for too long
Interview by John L. Walters
‘There is rarely any doubt in advertising or branding. The default setting is “amazing”. Whereas in editorial, the core tenet is doubt.’ [EXTRACT]
John-Patrick Hartnett
The work of this prolific young French studio is founded on practicality and systems, while transcending such prosaic methods
Interview by John L. Walters
‘We can’t be like artists, who can stick to one style and never adapt what they do based on what’s going on in the world. This doesn’t bother me, it excites me.’ [EXTRACT]
Jan Middendorp
Swiss designer Dafi Kühne works wholly in traditional letterpress techniques with entirely contemporary results
Interview by John L. Walters
‘You need a creative or design-oriented brain to figure out what the system is and how to shift it. Designers are good at this.’ [EXTRACT]
John-Patrick Hartnett
Brooklyn-based Chloe Scheffe designs books by groundbreaking thinkers and tackles magazines with a similarly radical approach
Steven Heller
‘The covers are meant to capture the moment, but we want them to make sense next week, next decade, in a hundred years!’
Jan Middendorp
This mega-mural by street artist eL Seed spans the walls of 50 buildings in a Christian Coptic community in Cairo
Interview by John L. Walters
‘We’ve come so far we’re not stopping now. Design has infused every part of our lives because of designers pushing to have a seat at the table.’
Steven Heller
Letterform Archive is feeding the post-digital generation’s passion for physical artefacts
A. R. Maxfield
This Sydney-based studio brings high-energy illustration and lettering to editorial design for food [EXTRACT]
Sarah Snaith
‘We overdose on communication, but “beautiful” design circulates only between the culturally literate.’
John L. Walters
Extinction Rebellion has grabbed the world’s attention with its imaginative, disciplined and urgent approach to graphic activism
Steven Heller
‘Buttons, flyers, posters, postcards, T-shirts and books. How primitive are the means we have to dissent. And yet I believe these modest tools can help change history.’
Rick Poynor
Founding editor Rick Poynor recalls the aims and ideas behind the launch of an independent design magazine