INQUE Magazine

INQUE is a large-format annual literary magazine dedicated to commissioning and publishing diverse global writing next to extraordinary art, design and photography, with an editorial remit to be creatively groundbreaking.

Dan Crowe (Editor) and Matt Willey (Art Director) are the duo who love making magazines but hate having to rely on advertising....

"We love giving writers freedom but hate wasting money on distribution. We love working with photographers and illustrators and want to have control over who we commission. We love the smell of paper and seeing it all come together but hate having to publish something when it’s not totally ready. We love the collaboration, the sense of the new, and the unfound, unseen and unpublished. That’s why we’re making INQUE—an exciting new ad-free magazine to be published, one issue per year, from 2021 through to 2030"

Mock-up INQUE cover

They will only manage to achieve their noble aim if YOU support them...

They have launched a Kickstarter campaign and they are 42% of their way to the target figure with 19 days to go. It is achievable but only if you support it and spread the message far and wide...

Mock-up INQUE layout. Photograph by Jack Davison.

Mock-up INQUE layout. Photograph by Christopher Anderson.

You can support the project on Kickstarter... 

HERE

Have a look, watch the fab 1 minute video ..and remember to tell all your friends!

You can support the project for any amount but just £45 will get you the first issue with a selection of  incentives, from T shirts to Tote bags and prints etc etc...

Mock-up INQUE layout.

Mock-up INQUE layout. Photograph by Maria Spann.

Mock-up INQUE layout. Photograph by Rich Gilligan.

Mock-up INQUE layout. Photograph by Agnes Lloyd-Platt.

Do something positive and have something to look forward to in 2021!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/inque/inque-magazine
https://inquemag.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 31.07.2020

Charleston Press No.2

Nestled in the South Downs, Charleston was the country meeting place for the writers, painters and thinkers known as the Bloomsbury group. Now run by the Charleston Trust, the house is an excellent museum and visitor attraction, presented to look as it did when the family lived here in the 1950's. The walled garden was created by the artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant to designs by Roger Fry and features Mediterranean influences with plants chosen for their intense colour and silver foliage. These became the subject of many works over their long residence at Charleston.

Published by the Charleston Trust, the Charleston Press includes includes newly commissioned essays exploring the themes, artists and stories of the exhibitions and programmes at Charleston, as well as articles marking important Bloomsbury anniversaries and events. This is the second issue and I wrote about the first issue here.

Size is 220x170mm, portrait and is perfect bound. The publication has an 8pp 'dustjacket' around the cover as you can see from the birdseye image below...

The below image shows the book (with the Colorset Solar cover) out of the dustjacket (100mm flaps) plus the wrap-around belly-band.

The 4pp cover, which is secreted under the dustjacket, is produced on our Colorset Solar (100% Recycled) 270gsm and is unprinted, being simply, but beautifully, debossed.

The 68pp text is printed on our Omnia 120gsm. The reason that Omnia was chosen is because it would beautifully reproduce the wide variety of different media, the artworks, solid colours and dark photography and most importantly feel special - with the reproduction that you would expect on a silk or gloss but with a natural tactile uncoated feel.

As a journal of essays and images inspired by the Charleston exhibitions titled In Colour, this is a very colourful issue with essays by Dr Darren Clarke, Professor Mary Ann Caws, Anne Starmer, Dr Alexandra Loske and interviews with Cressida Bell and Annie Sloan.

 Quotes on Colour combines images (Green, Blue, Gold and Grey) with quotations from Virginia Woolf's work which makes for a very powerful and engaging article...

The wrap around bellyband (70mm high) which tucks into the book, is printed on our Sixties 60gsm and because of the translucency, the background image shows through beautifully.

...you can see the level of show through in the detail image below.

Below image shows the 6mm spine, the perfect binding. The jacket is printed on Omnia 150gsm.

The reproduction on the Omnia is just something else, the level of detail and reproduction is superb as you can see the image below.

The publication is designed by Playne Design who have studios in London and Hastings. Creative Director is Clare Playne with production is handled by Simon Hack. Print production is by Pureprint. Like the first edition, this is an excellent example of a beautifully designed and well executed piece of print, entirely right for the subject. The publication is available for sale (at a very reasonable £5) HERE

https://www.charleston.org.uk/
http://www.playnedesign.co.uk/
https://www.pureprint.com/ 

Posted by Justin Hobson 29.07.2020

The Print Lady says it with flowers...

Ainslie Chivers is the Print Lady. Having been in print for over 25 years, Ainslie now works as an independent print professional managing print jobs for clients, design studios and individuals. She is based in Hampshire and as well as her knowledge of Litho, digital and finishing processes, she also possesses an Adana hand letterpress machine.

...and last week I received in the post a lovely note and examples of our new BOTANICA, Floral seed paper, letterpress printed!

Click on images to enlarge

 Below you can see the details of the petals:

I wrote about this new range, when we launched it on May Day this year HERE. The BOTANICA floral seed paper is handmade for us here in England by Two Rivers Paper, who are based at Pitt Mill in Somerset.

...and here is Ainslie's lovely note:

Because great care has been taken in the hand papermaking process, using 100% cotton, without chemicals and dried naturally (only by air) means that the seeds will germinate and grow. Below, you can see my efforts, grown on wet tissue on our window-sill.

...and my colleague Sarah Glennie has demonstrated her horticultural skills using compost in the image below - 4 weeks after planting:

My thanks to Ainslie for taking the time to send me examples and for spreading the good news of this new range to her clients.

https://www.printlady.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 27.07.2020

The Medium's Medium

The Gallery of Everything is London's first and only commercial space dedicated to non-academic and private art-making. The gallery's roster includes major historical master artists and newly discovered authors and creators. A British non-profit organisation, committed to the advancement, integration and celebration of artists and makers beyond the cultural mainstream.

Last year they presented an exhibition titled 'The Medium's Medium' a two part exploration into spiritualist and mediumistic art practices from the 19th century to the present day.

This is the catalogue which accompanied the exhibition and features drawings and paintings by a diverse range of authors, from established names to newer (re)discoveries. The catalogue is produced in the style of a 19th century pamphlet or chapbook as they are sometimes called.

Size is 210x165mm, portrait and is a 60pp 'self cover' which is saddle stitched. It is printed on our Redeem 100% Recycled 60gsm, which is a neutral white shade, which has the perfect tone for a 19th century publication and the 60gsm weight means it flows and flops perfectly...

It is printed offset litho throughout and the majority of pages are just printed in black only.

However, towards the middle of the publication, the drawings and paintings are reproduced with amazing clarity...

Click on images to enlarge

Centre spread, below

A lovely feature is the use of copper wire for the saddle stitches:

The 60gsm weight is just perfect for the publication.

...and even though this is a 60pp, the thickness is only 2mm! and it doesn't 'gape' in the spine as a heavier paper would, as you can see in the below image.

Print is by Identity Print, based in Paddock Wood with Paul Martin handling the project. You can read more about the exhibition here.

https://www.gallevery.com/
http://www.identityprint.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 24.07.2020

Wedding Invitation on Sixties

Over the many years I have been  paper merchant, the trickiest of all projects to be involved with is the graphic designer's own wedding invitation! Generally speaking there are many samples involved and lots of changes in direction in a desire to impress their design savvy friends! Not so, with this invitation, as I didn't know anything about it until I received a lovely email yesterday...

I met designer Sam Moffat this time last year, who had just set up his own practice in London called  Decade Studio. One of the products I showed Sam was our new SIXTIES. Sixties is a new paper (in 60gsm, hence the name!) which has the same type of translucency as a tracing paper, but feels like a normal paper. Unbeknown to me Sam identified this as the perfect stock for his upcoming wedding in November.

Click on images to enlarge

Size of the invitation is 420x297 (A3) folding down to 105x148mm (A6). It is digitally printed by Kestrel Press, white on the front and in black on the reverse.

… you can see the translucency in the images above and below. Photography is by Huy

Digital printing is by Kestrel Press based in Irvine. Kestrel had tested the Sixties on their digital press, including the use of digital white toner, which I wrote about in an article on this blog, which Sam spotted. The end result is absolutely superb. The invitations are sealed with an orange sticker, as you can see below...

Sam moved back to Australia in January and Decade Studio is now based in Hobart, Tasmania. My best wishes to Sam and Hannah on their new life together in Oz and thanks to Sam for taking the time to share this with me, so I could share it with you.

http://www.decade.studio/
http://www.kestrelpress.com/ 
https://www.instagram.com/huy____/

Posted by Justin Hobson 22.07.2020

Sustainable Print

Park Communications in London has an enviable reputation as being one of the Capital's foremost corporate printers and one with the highest environmental credentials, having won Printweek Environmental Printer of the year in 2017 followed by a highly commended in 2018.

Park has produced this guide aimed at providing tips about sustainable printing for brands and includes articles on sustainable materials, sustainable large format, and the creative opportunities of sustainable printing.

Size is A5 (210x148mm) portrait. The 4pp cover is printed on Crush, Corn 250gsm with the 8pp text on Shiro Echo, White 120gsm.

The above image shows a project for Spitfire Audio, printed by Park on a combination of Shiro Echo and Flora Giglio, which I wrote about on this blog here.

Our Crush range from Favini in Italy, is manufactured using 15% agro-industrial residues from the processing of corn and hopefully, in the below image, you can see the small specs and inclusions in the paper.

The guide is written, designed and printed by Park Communications and is digitally printed using their HP Indigo press. It is also available as a pdf download here.

https://www.parkcom.co.uk/

Posted by Justin Hobson 20.07.2020