Design Context: May 2015

What are the roles of layout and style in leading fashion magazines, and why are they significant?

Layout and style of a magazine play significant roles within the design process, and understanding the layout and arrangement is extremely important. The sizing, spacing, and placing of contents in the design form, is what we call the layout. An effective layout consists of flow, focus, alignment, balance and consistency; the fundamental principles of design must be also applied when considering layout and style. The styling of specific magazines is significant in how the content within the design is displayed. Magazines such as Vogue, GQ, Harpers Bizarre are all recognisable, these iconic magazines all have a particular styling. “Vogue places fashion in the context of culture and the world we live in, how we dress, live and socialise; what we eat, listen to and watch; who leads and inspires us. Thought provoking, relevant and always influential, Vogue defines the culture of fashion.” The elements of the cover design contribute to the success and durability of Vogue magazine; the printed cover of a magazine has a major impact on the consumer’s likelihood of purchasing it. The typography, colure and magazine identity play a significant role in the design of the magazines. “The focus of vogue was on the traditions of high society, and fashion was only mentioned when giving advice on what was appropriate to wear to an occasion” (History of vogue, 2012). Vogues brand identity remains clear and concise even though layout and image placement alter slightly; “over a century ager the magazines auspicious debut, Vogue’s covers continue to compel and influence” (Kazanjian, 2011). This suggests that the durability of the magazine is sustainable and will continue to be a leading trend setter for other magazines. The first issue of vogue was released in 1892 in America, the publishers Conde Naste then acquired the magazine in 1909, the main focus of the magazine was turned on to women; Vogue’s role was not to just reflect fashion trends, but it actually resulted in effectively shaping these trends.

Layout has great significance in magazine design as it communicates to the audience through the use of type, image, and other visual components on a page. The canons of page construction are a set of principles in the field of book design; used to present the ways that page proportions, margins and type areas of books are constructed. In the mid to late twentieth century Jan Tschichold was responsible for the mass appeal of notion of canons, and laws on page construction, based on the work of J.A van de Graaf. The van de Graaf canon is a method used in layout design for books, it allows the designer to divide the page in to pleasing proportions. “Though largely forgotten today, methods and rules upon which it is impossible to improve have been developed for centuries. To produce the perfect books these rules have to be brought to life and applied.” (Jan Tschichold). Looking at the secret law of page harmony, Retinart, it explores how certain stylistic attributes and approaches form the ‘perfect book.’ The method to produce the perfect book existed long before computer technology and the printing press. Jan Tschichold was the one who described the system as ‘the perfect book.’ The secret canon and page harmony illustrates ‘harmoniously’ blocks of text and the pages they were printed on which agree with one another and collectively become a harmonious unit. ‘Faces looking toward the spine create harmony, looking out they cause tension, if two images face in opposite directions even greater tension is created.’ The layout isn’t just a case of making the fundamental elements on the page fit nicely together, the layout has a purpose to communicate effectively to the consumer, “For the commercial world, design has always been a a matter of legitimate concern.” (J.Mckay, 2006) Jenny Mckay discusses all crucial elements relating to magazine design, and emphasise the importance of structure.

“Note the interaction, study how balance has been achieved, pay particular attention to the white space, cut up pages and rearrange them, see how a simple change of position of one element can transform a design.” (Walker, 1992: J.mckay) The role of copy and layout components, and the principle components of a specific layout all influence the design and the design creates pages people want to read therefore the importance of the layout is crucial. The headline, body copy and images all contribute towards the overall layout and style of design. Headlines are important because they create a strong bond between the publication and the reader, the type intends to stimulate curiosity about the feature and encourages the reader to continue, body copy also has a great significance; the study of the way words and images collaborate as symbols is know as semiotics. The images on a page, are the key visual element and their relationship to the story is crucial to the design. When designing, a compelling dialogue between text and where the image is placed is necessary, these elements create a visual narrative for the viewer. The layouts of vogue magazine covers do not exist for their aesthetically pleasing, and decorative design, but they do have a specific role, they make a significant impact on the on the consumers. It could be argued that the popularity of magazine is down to the cover. Consumers and social media also play a part in the overall success of vogue magazine, as they have made the popularity of the magazine increase. The women of Vogue magazine are represented as very empowering, iconic figures however there is always controversy as to whether these icons are being used as a product and selling tool for the consumer “the way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe” (Berger, 1972). Vogue magazine is considered to be one of the most influential fashion magazines of our time, “Vogue is to our era what the idea of God was, in Voltaire's famous parlance, to his: if it didn't exist, we would have to invent it. Revered for its editorial excellence and its visual panache, the magazine has long functioned as a bible for anyone worshiping at the altar of luxury, celebrity and style. And while we perhaps take for granted the extent to which this trinity dominates consumer culture today, Vogue’s role in catalyzing its rise to pre-eminence cannot be underestimated."

A designer will always apply the use of a grid system to their work particularly when creating layouts; they allow concise placing of key elements and attributes such as columns, margins and repeated rules, devising the grid is the initial stage and most significant when creating layout designs. Grid systems enable the graphic designer to organise whatever content they are working with consistently and precisely onto a page, using any combination of margins, guides, rows and columns. “Devising the grid is probably the single most important stage in determining how a magazine will look, and some commentators give it a heavy weight of significance.” (J.Mckay 2006). Grid systems are commonly seen in magazine layouts with columns of text and images. Grids can also be used across an entire project so that the structure is consistent throughout. The grid will not be noticed once the finished product has been printed, but before print, it enables a consistent design to be produced allowing the designer to organise the content suitably for the layout. There are several types of grid systems a designer can use; the simplest method is to use the rule of thirds. The rule consists of dividing a page into thirds with two equally spaced vertical/horizontal lines so that the important compositional elements can be placed along these lines or intersections. This is commonly used in photography. The golden ratio is another popular method (approximately 1.618) for proportioning. Mathematicians have studied the ratio and architects, artists and book designers for its aesthetically pleasing qualities have used it for centuries.

Within the layout, each page must have a consistent structure; the designer needs to consider the role of copy and layout components. The headline and heading is usually the largest type size on the layout, it aims to stimulate curiosity about the feature, enticing the viewer to read on, and the body copy is also another main feature of the layout. Body copy, can be arranged in multiple ways, the columns of text can be justified, aligned left or aligned right. The designer will adjust the body copy so that it looks as aesthetically pleasing as possible. Editorial design often shows left aligned text, as it slightly more pleasing to the eye when reading a larger quantity of print, the column widths should also be made narrow enough to read easily yet still allowing the right amount of white space. To make the overall readability easier, the more extensive blocks of text can be broken up, which will also make the page much lighter. Drop caps and initial caps indicate where the story/article begins, the drop caps and initial caps can sit within the body copy or outside. When choosing the font for a drop cap or initial cap, the designer must consider how it will compliment the rest of the body copy style. Something else that forms a main focal point on a page can be the quotes, and pull-quotes, and they can sometimes be an interesting addition to the overall page design. Most magazines include the quotes and pull-quotes, they are aesthetically pleasing and break up columns of text effectively, which makes the story/article slightly easier to read, they can be incorporated by running them in a separate column, running them as bands across a whole spread, or using them with images. To give a good structure to the layout, strap lines and section headings are used, they emphasise and identify what the subject matter or feature is about, captions also inform the reader about certain content related to an image. The captions usually appear on the image or near the image; they identify the reason for the images presence and relationship to the story. The images are key visual elements within the layout, and their relationship to the story is crucial to the design. The image illustrates the story, or the text is driven by the image, and it is important to create an interesting dialogue between the text and visuals. There are many different ways to approach image use. The position of the image on the page creates an expression and visual narrative for the viewer, faces looking toward the spine create harmony, looking out they create tension.

Magazine design has always been one of the major determinants of success of any magazine, and when creating a magazine layout it is crucial to keep a good balance between the white space, images, and text. The magazine cover helps sell the magazine first then the content comes second. The cardinal rule in magazine design should be “we always sacrifice design on the alter of content.” (Samar Hushi 2001). The magazine cover is also significant part of the design, and the visuals seen on the cover are also what the reader sees first, this will be recognised more than the title of the magazine; it should combine creative uses of colour and type within an organised layout that is pleasant to read and compliments the art work used to tell its stories. “Vogue has pioneered a host of aesthetic, technological and commercial advances, virtually all of which inform the fashion and media industry” (Weber, 2006). The page layout of the double page spread (fig.1) shows the entire key components discussed. Vogue tends to use a white background for the layouts, which allows a greater focus to the focal points being images, or text columns. The text has been displayed in a three column structure, with the opposing page displaying a full bleed image. The drop caps used segregates the different portions of the story, allowing the reader to have ease when looking at the article; it creates an aesthetically pleasing layout. The body copy has been centre aligned, creating a concise structure for the layout. The pull quote has been used as focal point in-between the second and third column, this creates a nice focal point for the viewer and is an interesting addition to the overall page design as it breaks up the text effectively. A contrasting double page spread (fig.2) shows a very text heavy layout style, allowing only the pull quotes and one subtle text based image as the visuals to accompany the text. The drop caps add an aesthetic touch the page layout, even though it is very text heavy the article still works, as it is very legible and does not strain the eye to read.

Overall I have learned that the role of layouts within magazine design have a significant impact on what the magazine as a whole communicates and how the reader perceives the brand. Structure of a layout consists of much more than meets the eye, the technical processes of determining the most suitable grid system is the basis for any design work, the grid acts as a platform for the content and story making the grid the most significant component. The visual aesthetics of the layout rely on the use of images and arrangement of body copy; it is crucial to keep a good balance between the white space, images and text. The fundamental principles if design must be applied when considering the layout and style, in order for the finished publication to effectively communicate to the reader. The secret law of page harmony has taught extended my knowledge on the principles of editorial design and role of layout within design; type, grid, colour are all important components when constructing the layout. “Faces looking toward the spine create harmony, looking out they cause tension; if two images face in opposite directions even greater tension is caused.” One of the main reasons design is important to a magazine is that it communicates the values and aspirations of a title before the potential consumer has read a single word, the design hierarchy of needs suggests that a design must meet basic needs before it can satisfy higher level needs, in order to be successful. Looking at the De Graaf canon, it has allowed me to identify myself what a successful, aesthetic layout needs to consist of. The styling of the specific magazine is significant in how the content within the design is displayed. To conclude, I have found that the relationship between the fundamental processes of the design and the design itself, have a strong partnership. The finished layout design all stems from the initial technical processes of creating the foundation for the layout, including the grid and content.

References

Berger, J. (1972) Ways of seeing. London: Penguin books

Mckay, J. (2006) The magazines handbook. London: Routledge

Tshichold, J. (1991) The form of the book: Essays on the morality of good design. Aldershiot: Lund Humphries

The secret law of page harmony

King, S. (2001) Magazine design works: Rockport publishers

Zapaterra, Y. (2007 ) Art direction and Editorial Design

Fig.1