AIGA Launches a Print Magazine and Answers the Big Question — Why?

If you follow this blog at all, you know we are pretty big fans of the folks at AIGA, the professional association for design. We often share or cite their Eye on Design blog, which offers interesting and insightful online content, like this article we referenced on the growing indie magazine scene.

Now, AIGA is stepping into that scene in their own right, with the launch of the Eye on Design print magazine.

Perrin Drumm, editor of the new title, spoke to the team at Magculture about the launch, and why they thought print was the next logical step for the brand.

“I’m a writer, ephemera collector and daughter of a letterpress printer; I can’t pass a used bookshop without buying something old and musty,” she explains. “Which is all to say I love things printed on paper, and like most editors, I had an early and ardent love affair with magazines. Opening them up was like accepting a special invitation to a strange new land, a VIP tour to an entirely different world. I still feel that excitement when I open a magazine today. Where am I going to go? Where are they going to take me?

“But professionally,” Drumm continues, “I came up through the editorial ranks of online publishing—often at titles that ran both print and digital—so I recognize the value of both, and understand how stories function best in both formats. Despite all the benefits of digital publishing, it doesn’t provide the same kind of immersive reading experience that a magazine can.”

She speaks in detail about the kind of deep-reaching stories that are far more suited to print than screen. “Personally, those [online] stories are fun to experience as one-offs, but I don’t want to regularly read long stories on my phone or computer,” Drumm explains. “I spend too much time in front of screens as it is.”

Their new title, scheduled to print three times a year, gives them the platform to take those deep dives on the issues on more global topics.

“We found ourselves wanting to invest more time reporting on certain issues (sexuality, mental health, education, etc.),” Drumm explains, “and while we still publish under those verticals on the site, we recognise that print offers the opportunity to really dig into one specific area from a variety of points of view and in a range of formats in a way the digital medium, or at least our site, just isn’t suited for.”

If their magazine is as well-done as their other content (and we have no reason to expect otherwise), the Eye on Design magazine is going to be great. You can order your copy here, and enjoy the experience. We’ll definitely keep our eye on this one.