57. MAGAZINE SPOTLIGHT: THE GREEN

Magazine Spotlight #04
The Green Soccer Journal www.thegreensoccerjournal.com

When issue number one arrived back in late 2010, I was so excited – a well-done magazine that addressed lifestyle and design in the context of football, or soccer as they have chosen to call. Recognising the diversity of football fans (which you must remember is without a shadow of a doubt the biggest sport in the country) and that we are not all pub-philic, beer-loving, foul-mouthed hooligans, the magazine presents a modern, mature outlook on the hot sport for a design-conscious audience (and indeed created by design-conscious, well, designers). So it was my perfect magazine and I felt that I represented the perfect readership.

I've purchased the first four issues, each of which highlights a theme to explore and includes valuable, journalistic interviews with some of the biggest names in football and accompanied by beautifully shot photography of unique perspectives away from the matchday furore. And it's very interesting to read, perhaps another good example of nailing an appropriately niche subject and doing it attractively.

However, it's not all good, because the writing and language was rather average, yet the price continued to go up from an initial £4 for Issue One to £8 for Issue Four, before doubling the latter for its current 'revamped' issue Number Five. And that's a bit too much for me and I've refused to purchase it. My intrigue is still very much there, I still want to pick up a copy and spend time with it, but I just think the price hike is too high, and certainly given the quality of what it's been thus far (which I reiterate wasn't at all bad, but fair at 5 or 6 pounds). They claim the magazine has taken a new, progressed direction with higher quality printing and denser issues, but I remain unconvinced. A £16 publication can't make grammatical errors in its own About passage, come on now. (I've underlined the childish error.)

The Green Soccer Journal is a biannual magazine that takes an innovative, cultured and intelligent approach to the worlds most popular sport. The publication includes an eclectic mix of football culture and is built on a passion for the game, something which is shared by all of our contributors.

Displayed in a creative, visually stimulating format, we have worked with some of our favourite photographers, and writers to create a title that offers an alternative view on all things football.

I don't disagree with its cultured and intelligent approach (not sure what innovation it's describing) but the second paragraph is frankly boring, just telling us it's superficially pretty – something I firmly believe, whilst of course important, should fruit naturally from its content and aims rather than an independent consideration point.

To summarise, it's a good magazine and one I would have (and have had) no qualms with, had it not called for higher scrutiny with its new price point, for which I do not think it sufficiently delivers. Shame.

54. RESPONSE AND REACTION

Territories was good and bad for me. Good because it gave me the opportunity to tell my story so far (and to refine it for myself in doing so), but bad because of the feeling I had afterward (although that too is probably good that it's now and not later). I was basically told that the project wasn't 'Goldsmiths' enough, or that's how I received it anyway. And I don't know what to do with that.

I didn't particularly choose this institution for its perhaps atypical priorities of learning or because of its supposed difference. My application process and interview didn't ask me about such compatibility either. I suppose I felt at the time somewhat confused about what was being asked of me. We were clearly told at the beginning to do what enthuses us ourselves, not to serve the needs or desires of the tutors or institution. But of course I simultaneously realise that this is a weighty project that holds high significance in my attainment for the degree, one that will be marked just as any other piece of work I've ever done in educational context. So to be put on the spot and asked by the anonymous member of staff in the audience "Why are you at Goldsmiths if all you want to do is make a magazine?" (or words to that effect), it seemed unfair. After all, it is my interest while yes I am a student at Goldsmiths. Slightly frustrated, particularly given that the initial response from Laura two weeks ago was positive. All I thought I'd done was to produce work following what was agreed in that previous discussion, and now suddenly I've been made to feel as though I don't belong here (also a personal blow having specifically migrated here from medical school where I'm sure I didn't belong.)

However. Whoever that tutor was, I refuse to believe he's stupid – he must have justification in his response, and to add to that, the other tutors seemed not to disagree. I've had a few days, almost a week, to reflect and I think I understand what was being advised. It's not enough for a final year project at Goldsmiths to simply create another magazine title to sit comfortably in the newsstand. I believe I can deliver that, and make a damn good job of it too, but maybe it's too superficial, not rich enough in original concept? That's not something I'd disagree with, I should absolutely be making innovative steps in the industry and aim to be its spearhead, the pioneer or revolutionary. How, I don't know just yet, but I think that now becomes an acceptable, good project ambition.

So I feel better. But that's not to say I still have further opinion on Goldsmiths' approach. I understand that its priority – dissimilar to other leading institutions – is that work is conceptually strong, stemming from solid foundations of theoretical understanding and societal impact. And I agree with that importance. But I get the feeling that the disciplinary learning, the skill sets and degree of execution are too lowly prioritised, mocked at times. This doesn't make sense to me. Designing something nice and pretty for the sake of designing something nice and pretty has little worth, that I agree with and accept, but the ideologically sound projects that we are encouraged to generate should still be finished to as high a standard as the professional industry (and other leading institutions) do. The priority should be both, no? One or two weeks of Technical Studies per year seems ridiculous. Of course my argument is becoming broader and less focussed now, but it forms part of my response to my project not being sufficiently 'Goldsmiths', whatever that means. Making another publication that is beautifully laid out and aesthetically pleasing is not good enough, for sure (but it's not to say that the outcome shouldn't be a beautiful artefact – it really should). To fulfil my expectations as a student here, and to genuinely produce more exciting work though, I understand there must be something new that I create. That's my challenge. I must still satisfy my own needs and my own interests, but I must also show as much as possible proof of my understanding and learning from my time here at Goldsmiths. There's a challenge I accept, does that sound reasonable to you?

48. MAGAZINE SPOTLIGHT: CAFFEINE

Magazine Spotlight #03

Caffeine www.caffeinemag.com

Available to pick up for free, Caffeine is the coffee lover's magazine, distributed to selected coffee shops around the country to serve as the 'stockists'. Of course it makes sense in terms of hitting the right readership and that is indeed how I found out about it. I've managed to collect issues 1 to 3 so far, with the current edition still eluding me.

Whilst short in relative terms of page count (probably aligning itself to the Stylist or Sport market) the content is presented with an air of expertise, finding the right, attractive quantity (and quality) of specificity. The publication includes journalistic articles, photography, reviews, essays and surveys to tell the Caffeine story and, really, provides everything you'd expect a 'coffee lover's magazine' to provide. Its advertising is smart and direct too, relevant for us the readers, spanning the likes of organic beans, espresso machines and coffee houses, all more helpful than irritating.

The magazine is a good example of narrowing into one specific subject and exploring the area in depth, with the challenge to present the specialist findings in a manner that is both appealing and amusing for all. Oh, and from spilling the beans to ground rules, I for one don't get bored of the cafe wordplay at all.

46. LIVE

2013 has been a year topped with live gigs for me. With an average of almost two a month and a list of artists in excess of 70, I reckon that's a lot (and financially too, probably amassing to about £300). But it's been so fun and I love my attendance, being able to be in the presence of music happening, witnessing and experiencing it being performed in front of me, collaboratively creating a unique atmosphere for all parties to enjoy. For me, there's nothing better – and as a fan, surely it's a must. I write this now on the back of watching Daughter's headline show at Shepherds Bush Empire last night.

>> Visit my Instagram profile for photographs
>> Visit tlee. Black and search Live for individual blog entries

42. MAGAZINE SPOTLIGHT: MONOCLE

Magazine Spotlight #02
Monocle www.monocle.com

"Keeping an eye on the world" since 2007, Monocle was launched by the man behind Wallpaper magazine, Tyler Brûlé. It's the one title I am a paid subscriber for, accepting their package of 10 issues + 2 papers + 1 tote bag + full online archive access + event invitations for an annual fee of £90. That price is actually more than what the cost of buying individual copies at the newsstand would be – a challenge to the standard pricing model where in-advance batch subscriptions tend to be better value. This is explained in the confidence placed on their services, a subscription being more than just a sales contract but as an act of buying into the brand. And Monocle's branding is one of the most complete around.

In partnership with sister design studio Winkreative, Monocle has rapidly achieved an iconic status of design and presence. The magazine aims to pioneer the ever-changing print and journalism industries, priding themselves with dense, in-depth and carefully selected content covering what they have identified as today's most relevant topics in affairs, business, culture and design (following a beautifully effective logic of ABCD). Significantly rooted across all parts of the world with offices, correspondents and sources, the work is assured to be genuine and unique, and certainly doesn't lack in quantity either as issue after issue they deliver seemingly larger, book-ish documents that I've currently collected the past 23 of.

Monocle has from the beginning laid out its version of aspirations and represents a high quality lifestyle in collaboration with their readership, and in recent years the company has expanded and ventured into radio broadcasting, physical shops and cafés to supplement the paper product and emphasise their values. Each outlet offers a different, yet equally asset of the brand and has proven to be a fine example of changing the relationship with its followers and the expectations for what a magazine title provides. At the very least, it's a successful challenge on what the relatively static print culture had been in the past couple of decades. Now, six years down the line, the format remains unchanged in its aesthetic design, which clearly reflects said aspirations and framework, using a sure template filled with beautiful first-hand photography and a masterful combination of Plantin and Helvetica.

It's a publication I constantly have much to take and learn from, in all aspects of its venture and one that has no doubt inspired my joy for the revival of print media.

27. MAGAZINE SPOTLIGHT: OFFSCREEN

Magazine Spotlight #1
Offscreen www.offscreenmag.com

First up in my spotlight series of good publications is Offscreen, a magazine exploring the people behind websites and apps – a smart concept looking at the offscreen lives of those who are behind the work we see on screen as well as more literally being behind screens all day for a living. I'm no coding enthusiast nor app developer, but it's still really interesting to be presented with how these people operate and to hear their outlooks on the broader notion of design and lifestyle.

Originally a web designer by trade, Kai Brach launched the first issue of Offscreen in early 2012. Feeling disconnected by the fast pace and the ephemeral nature of the digital world, after ten years of freelance work Kai wanted to create something more tangible. With Offscreen Magazine, he combines both his love for technology and the web, and the unique experience of printed magazines.

In the span of three months, Kai "converted" from a UI designer to an editorial art director, not only publishing and editing Offscreen but also designing the magazine from the ground up. As such, Offscreen is still a one-man operation, and a proudly authentic indie magazine supported by amazing contributors and curious readers. Kai hopes to reinvigorate printed magazines as a choice of media that provides a welcome break from our always-on society.

The words here, extracted from Offscreen's own About page, are eloquently put and provides a perfect introduction to the project's aims and purpose, which resonate with my feelings towards print as both an industry and as a reader who can appreciate good content. Printed magazines being a "unique experience" is vital to note, as an experience I am eager to find in its creation as well as the experience I feel as a reader. I think that Offscreen's statement of intent or self-instigated value is well communicated and on point for fitting into our lifestyle. It's therefore one of my favourite publications in the market, and has thus found itself first in my series of upcoming 'spotlights'.

21. MATERIAL DISDAIN

Materials and making aren't really my forte, so I'm not particularly looking forward to Monday's workshop. But the tutors' sentiments so far have been really agreeable so I trust there will be something for me to take away from it. I am useless at hands-on physical stuff though!

18. SIGUR ROS VALTARI MYSTERY FILM EXPERIMENT

This is a series of moving image work to accompany songs by Sigur Rós for their album "Valtari". It's a lovely concept where select artists and directors were each given the same small budget to work with and no further instruction. They were allowed to make whatever they felt appropriate choosing a song off the record. There are 16 in total and they are all beautiful.

Sigur Rós gave fourteen film makers the same modest budget and asked them to create whatever comes into their head when they listen to songs from the band's album Valtari. The idea is to bypass the usual artistic approval process and allow people utmost creative freedom.

"We never meant our music to come with a pre-programmed emotional response. We don’t want to tell anyone how to feel and what to take from it. With the films, we have literally no idea what the directors are going to come back with. None of them know what the others are doing, so hopefully it will be interesting." – Sigur Rós, May 2012

The way that video can so powerfully move one's emotions and also its ability to enrich what is already superb music are attributes that I just love about the medium. The creative potential is huge and often the result can be so mesmerising. I've ordered a new camera for myself, with which I hope to recreate these qualities over time and really learn its art. The full kit should arrive next week and I'm very excited.

My favourite from the Sigur Rós series is the one below, a short film by Floria Sigismondi entitled "Leaning Towards Solace", using two of my favourite tracks on the LP. I don't think my brain is yet trained to justly critique moving image, but there's something about the cinematography and storytelling here that is so so beautiful to me. It's a film that blends the realms of art and design for sure, but it's executed so charmingly. If I made this 12 minute film for my Year 3 project, I'd be delighted.



> Read more on the project and Sigur Rós at tlee. Black
>> Visit the official Valtari Mystery Film Experiment website
>> Watch all the videos on Vimeo

13. COMPATIBILITY ISSUE

Someone talked about designers being in/compatible in a presentation last week and that's something that resonates. Probably not in the sense of compatible or incompatible opinions or styles, but in the type of design or contextual environment. Incompatibility arises when we have dissimilar definitions for what design is and what it covers.

For instance, I was at 100% Design in September and "incompatible" is an apt term for describing my experience. It was my first time there, but immediately it was clear that their presentation of 'design' was different to mine. It felt like I had simply walked into the wrong room, like a carpenter finding himself (or herself) in the gardening section at Homebase. The majority of stands consisted of only salesmen and 'corporate types' who I am 100% sure are not what I call designers – perhaps not the "100%" theme they were going for.

But bearing in mind this is the biggest LDF event of them all, you have to wonder how it can be so incompatible to someone like myself, a student and enthusiast of design. Perhaps I am just a minority, and to most people this is how design translates. It's always been a terrifying notion that people don't really know what design is, which opens up so many more questions and fears. If it's true that for most people, the general public, our (that is, designers') supposed target audience in most cases, can attend a trade show like 100% Design and think that that's what design is, it raises big issues for us who find it incompatible. I've come through two years of studying Design at Goldsmiths, believing that design affects everything, relates to everything and ultimately is everything, but for that to apparently be such a niche is surely a concern, a contradiction.

Referring back to the original presentation that this topic was mentioned (sorry I can't remember who's), compatibility is rather vital in finding people to work with, whether that be employers, partners or whatever else – we have to be compatible in our work and our direction, which is actually quite obvious. We all want to be with people on the same wavelength, that 'get' each other. But I'm not sure it's just a case of matching personalities or getting along as mates; I think it's something deeper into our belief systems and outlooks on life.

12. INITIAL REACTION

We gave our first presentations today on our interests and possible avenues of exploration and direction. Rather than expressing my joy for print and video, I chose instead to talk about joy itself and we tend not to appreciate as much as we could. Allow me to expand.

I wrote in Entry 2 about the idea of a 'Listening Club', whereby we enjoy music for music and give it our full attention to give ourselves a fair opportunity to listen to it and understand it, and to subsequently form a valid opinion of it. I have a hypothesis to say that by doing this, we can reach higher levels of enjoyment and indeed appreciation. Appreciate in order to appreciate, you could say. So anyway, I spoke for 2 minutes questioning the reasons behind our apparent lack of fair treatment towards music (or indeed anything else, really) and the possible incentives behind choosing to do so, choosing to give more time and effort into enjoying it.

The feedback wasn't negative – that's always reassuring. There's definitely a suggestion of this 'appreciation' that I talk about holding a more critical eye towards the subject, which of course raises further questions of whether we're all critics (or whether we all have the right to be) and whether we need to concern ourselves with it. For many, such subjects are a mere form of entertainment or pastime (in its most derogatory sense) that don't necessitate our valuable time, saved only for 'experts'. Perhaps it's something of a niche, like how actual existing appreciation societies tend to be. Relatively small collectives of people who converse about pretty much anything to relatively unique depths and enthusiasm. Reading Clubs may just be the commonest example of all. That's certainly a research area to delve into.

7. I O S SEVEN

I haven't updated to iOS 7 yet. And not just because I don't like the sickly colour overload. There's no disputing that there are some neat functions available that Apple users have long been patient without. Marking all email as read, having a working Clock app icon, the Command Centre of course. But for me there are too many flaws that tell me that the workers at Apple (one of my favourite brands out there) haven't understood their task.

Skeumorphism to flat design, the main visual change that iOS 7 brings and a point of conversation that has seen the internet erupt with opinion and debate. Yes, I was never a fan of that torn paper look on iCal and Notes, or the tacky stage curtains in Photo Booth – I fucking hated it. But that's not to say skeumorphism should have been scrapped altogether. It's true I'm not certain to what extent that terminology actually refers to, but I believe it was originally brought about for a good reason (why else would Steve Jobs have given it the go ahead?). Its benefits were to help us use it easily and seamlessly, without ever feeling unfamiliar or uncomfortable. Natural user intuition. Subtle things like seeing the tone of shadows change as we press a 'button' to mimic the depth of actually pushing a button – these are the details that we may not have actively appreciated, but are fundamental in persuading our brains and instincts that we're using it right. Unfortunately the stripped back anti-skeumorphism platform of iOS 7 is so extreme that it's lost that basic intuition, I feel. The buttons are so unclear that I can't even tell what's press-able and what isn't – and I'd consider myself sufficiently tech-savvy. There's a massive lack of hierarchy or distinction throughout: what's currently selected, where's my active field of working, where does the title end and the description begin?

Removing the 'leather' bookmark tab and the faux stitch binding is justly undoing unnecessary skeumorphism, sure, but removing shadows and clarity is just backwards and illogical. And it's just so white. It seems the designers were so keen to simplify and clean up that they lost sight of the overarching priorities that their product must achieve. It's been long documented that Apple have slowed down, if not stopped, their innovation, but this software revamp is a terrible step in the wrong direction. At best, they've caught up with their competitors in terms of functionality, which we'd argue is long overdue and largely to please our previous frustrations. But since when were Apple satisfied with just catching up? What happened to being the leading tech house that raised and pushed the fast-changing industry? Shame really.

> This entry is written on a whim as a result of slowly accumulated thought and no direct research. My arguments may turn out to be invalid and might one day decide that I actually quite fancy the update, who knows.

>> Find out more about Apple's latest software update here. The image used in this post is taken from the linked page.

4. DESIGN IT YOURSELF

This is a talk given by Kate Moross at Here 2013 for It's Nice That back in June this year.

Stay motivated, stop asking others for what is readily available for you to do yourself, and bullshit improvise your way to success. These are essentially the take-home messages from her 30 minute lecture, and it's very hard to disagree. I've spent the first two years of my degree trying to get to grips with the concept of design and I am convinced that the best way to learn is to do, that experience trumps everything else. It's been the case for my own work so far, not bringing much technical ability with me at the start of the programme but I can confidently say I've picked up certain skills and that's thanks to experimenting and doing (you and I both know Goldsmiths don't directly teach much in the way of technical nous).

With today's internet culture, thanks to Google, YouTube tutorials and all, anyone can pretty much start to learn anything. The only barrier is whether you want to or not, right? It certainly did me well over my placement last term. "You have everything in front of you to find the answer, don't be so lazy." Kate also touches upon the notion of 'hacking', a topic I looked into extensively as part of Year 2. I'll look into the archives for that again later.

Oh and Limewire... what a throwback that is.

> Read the original article on It's Nice That here.

2. LISTENING CLUB

I like my music. I listen to it every minute I possibly can, I follow the activity of my favourite musicians and watch them live, I buy their records. And I care too – I've invested in pretty darn good speakers for home and a couple of headphones for elsewhere, because I want to experience it in the best possible way. Sure I listen to it whilst working, but that's not to say I don't make time to just sit and listen either. And that's what I want to discuss right now.

Listening with our full attention. Really appreciating the work, because let's face it, artists spend their time and effort in making the perfect record, taking considerations for every detail and producing something they are proud of. They certainly don't do that so that we can play it a couple times on a YouTube rip through sub-sub-standard PC speaker output, whilst simultaneously talking on the phone and cooking dinner. From a designer's perspective, we meticulously plan and execute work (because that's the designer's job) and we know it would absolutely pain us to see people treat it without full respect. So why is it the norm for us to treat music always as a secondary priority for our attention?

Before I go further, I would like to make clear what I mean when I say music. Without doubt, it's an industry that involves heavy business influences whereby it makes money, as with most if not all other industries. And there are artists who make music to make money (and there's nothing wrong with that at all). But it's important to acknowledge that there are also artists who make music because that's what they value most and feel passionate to achieve, and there are many of them. I distinguish that as two different forms: entertainment and music. Someone like Rihanna sits in a meeting with writers who each bring with them proposals for lyrics and she picks one she likes. Then in another meeting she is played melody demos and again chooses one she likes. Producers put the selected couple together and make a song, Rihanna goes into the studio and records the vocal part, then it's sent off again to be mixed, mastered and ultimately finished for public release. And I have nothing against this, because her number one selling point is not her musical craft, but the quality of her voice and perhaps more importantly her undeniably incredible skill to perform. This is "entertainment" and this is irrelevant to my case today. I'm talking about those who release their own music, those who are selling their music and put everything into the music. Just like how we put together design projects.

For them, it surely can't be enough for me to play the chorus on my phone and then be a 'fan'. Whilst it's definitely important to be attractive at a superficial level, there is no doubt that there is so much more to it. So much more that we couldn't possibly appreciate if we didn't try to. I want "listening clubs" to be a thing, a dedicated occasion for focussing 100% of our energy into hearing the sounds and really experiencing the work, to give ourselves the opportunity to delve deep into the material and indeed the musicians themselves, and feel genuine response to it. It's the least that it deserves. As a designer, I care about questioning why any creative decision was made, why this was chosen over that, why it's done in this way. We don't just sell our skills (the ability to use Creative Suite), the main value of a designer in my opinion is our ability to decide what's good and proper, the ability to see how to best use our skills. Perhaps this is similar with musicians: it's not just the talent of playing an instrument very well or having a lovely voice, but their best asset is to know how to effectively combine these skills to complete a holistic art. Just because you can use Photoshop, that doesn't make you a designer. Similarly, just because you can sing, that doesn't make you a musician.

So that's why we should learn to better appreciate the goodness of music (or at least the attempt for goodness) by doing our part as the listener with maximum desire and responsibility. That's what the artists would have wanted and I believe that's our obligation as the recipient.

> Find out what I like listening to on tlee. Black.