OUGD601 - Extended Essay Research - Them.

Them. is a new platform launched by Condé Nast on 4 October 2017 that promises content for and by LGBT and gender non-conforming individuals, focusing on political and social issues as well as fashion and entertainment. The platform will consist of both a printed magazine and social media presence (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter). It is interesting that this venture has chosen to construct an online presence before a physical one. At the time of writing there have been no indications of if and when the printed magazine will make its debut.

Amid the release of Them. Condé Nast revealed that they would be ceasing production on the print editions of Teen Vogue, one of their most successful magazines to date, due both to budget cuts and a favouring of the use of digital platforms to connect with a digital generation. The timing of this decision is note worthy as in the last few years Teen Vogue changed creative directors and made a remarkable shift to focus more on social and political stories relevant to its younger audience, as well as providing a greater voice to individuals of all colours and genders. Teen Vogue had evolved dramatically to represent many of the ideals laid out in the manifesto for the Them. platform, so it would perhaps seem counter productive to axe an already successful platform in favour of generating a new one without the promise of success. This leads to the conclusion that perhaps we won't see a printed magazine after all.

The existing branding for Them. will be analysed as part of the extended essay. Initial observations reveal that the platform went through a significant rebrand just two weeks after its initial launch in order to attract a younger audience. The printed magazine will perhaps aim to sit amongst other high-end low-budget lifestyle magazines, including the likes of Riposte, The Gentlewoman and Hello Mr.

OUGD601 - Context of Practice Tutorial 2

During the second feedback session the plan for the essay was examined and evaluated. It was discussed that although there were many examples of publications identified that could be used as case studies it is important to ensure that each case study remains relevant to the original questions. It is also important to fully research design theory and integrate it into the evaluation of these case studies in order to ground the main ideas explored within the essay in relevant context.

For the next tutorial session it was agreed that research would have again continued and writing would have started on one of the chapters.

OUGD601 - Essay Plan

Having decided on the major themes of my essay a formal essay plan was drawn up. This would ensure that the essay would remain well-structured throughout and that any gaps in theory and research could be identified and the problem rectified.

What Is The Importance Of Graphic Design To The Success of Queer Publications?

Chapter 1: Introduction (400 words)


What does queer encompass?

How do you measure success? (scale of production, scale of distribution, scale of message, scale of changes they make)

Publishing can mean both commercial and funded and also DIY

Can graphic design be linked to the success of these publications

I will look at queer publications, their history and their present status, as well as looking to the future to see where



Chapter 2: Main Body 1 Context and Themes and Case Studies of Practice (3, 500 words)


Zines:

‘The medium is the message’ - Marshal McLuhan (Power To The People pg. 6)

Examples:

Sapphic
Queer Zines by Printed Matter
Chapess
Leste



Commercial Magazines:

New wave of commercial magazine that have started to include queer voices

Still a disproportionate amount of solely queer publications

Talk about where the majorities are - lots of high end gay male magazines: Gay Letter, Butt, but only zines for gay or bisexual women

Accessibility for different genders - talk to Kuba about publications they distribute and Hebe from Manchester lgbt zine library

I will analyse how they use aesthetic to validate themselves, and the problems that this causes, favouring aesthetic over function and purpose


Historical: design perhaps wasn't as considered

e.g. On Our Backs, Amazon Quarterly


Contemporary: Design is incorporated to bridge the gap between DIY and commercial, weight of the publications has also increased, larger zines look more like anthologies or catalogues

e.g. DIVA, Butt, Kutt, Girls Like Us, Dyke On, Them.

Archives:

What is the future of queer publications? Tied into the question of the future of all publications.

Publishing had it’s moment and then faded during the technological revolution.

Lesbian archives are often organised alphabetically by the authors first name because the surname was thought of as patriarchal as it often came from the father

 
Chapter 3: Main Body 3 Reflective Practice (700 words)


Conclude from the research a publications which can be considered unsuccessful because of the design, or perhaps how the design has influenced other factors that may have led to less success in terms of sale, distribution etc. Rebrand this example by applying modern graphic ideas to the design in order to increase the success of the magazine in the future/should it be relaunched.

Expand this into an archive? I’ve talked about how there are few physical archives of queer magazines (On Our Backs) and perhaps creating an archive or rebranding an existing one will ensure the future of present day queer mags.

Chapter 4: Conclusion (400 words)


What makes a successful queer publication?

Questioning the shift in platform

Zines originally existed because they had to, now it’s more of an aesthetic trend than a necessity

There’s no one straight path to creating the perfect queer publication. It depends on a myriad of factors, most of which are down to the decisions of straight people in a position of publishing power.

Zines encourage community because they are less designed and more accessible, however a well designed magazine and social media presence will create a larger community following by creating a consumable and desirable brand (which is why I did a rebrand for my project)

Do we need queer magazines now? It’s vital to be represented in every media sphere but queer people were kept quite long enough that we’ve taken to twitter and instagram now. Digital spheres have taken over the role of printed ones. An instagram has the same concept as a book - a collection of curated pictures and text bound together on the same platform.