50 magazines to buy before you die

I’m not that good at introductions but I know I’m good at searching and researching for what’s new in photography. This website is celebrating this week seven years of activity and yesterday celebrated almost three months of inactivity. During this temporary lack of presence, I moved in the wonderful city of Berlin where I prepared some great articles about people, stories and photography from all around the world, especially Romania. Here is a first one, inspired by my visits to motto distribution, doyoureadme and pro qm, located in Berlin. Of course, many of them I’ve discovered online and some of them are in my wishlist. Here are fifty magazines to buy before you die, photography related. Hope the title didn’t scare you off.

Elephant is a quarterly magazine on contemporary art and visual culture. Featuring up-to-the-minute visual material, fresh faces and original voices, the magazine covers and uncovers new trends and talent in contemporary visual culture. The latest issue, #17, came up in December 2013, here is the table of contents.

Kennedy is a “biannual journal of curiosities”. I discovered the little book/magazine in Do you read me?, a wonderful bookshop in Berlin. It’s a new publication with the first issue published in summer 2013 and it contains stories and photographs packed in a distinguishably design. The cover is also very… different. Find Kennedy at www.kennedymagazine.com.

Teller is a magazine of stories told in pictures, words and both. Edited by Katherine Hunt and Ruby Russell and designed by Neue Gestaltung, Teller publish fiction and non-fiction writing from 500 to 5000 words, poetry, photostories and graphic art. They are open for submissions that should be original work with a strong story to tell. More info on tellermagazine.com.

The Plant provides botanical content in a simple, personal and cozy way. “The magazine presents a monograph on a specific plant; bringing together photographers, illustrators, designers, musicians, writers and visual artists, both established and emerging, from all over the world. These people share with The Plant their unique perceptions and experiences of plants.” Simply, wonderful! The latest issue is about Banana Plant and, among others, you can find works of Takashi Homma. More about The Plant on their website.

The Alpine Review is “a comprehensive publication that tracks changes in thought, systems and creations around the world in a variety of disciplines ranging from tech to agriculture, design to anthropology”. The editors are Louis-Jacques Darveau and Patrick Tanguay and the latest issue of the magazine, #2, is about Returns. Find more details at thealpinereview.com.

The Gourmand is a food and culture journal from London inspired by the true passion for food and by the exciting influx of new places to eat. It’s edited by David Lane and Marina Tweed and it’s “the creation of The Gourmand is a testament to the communicative power of food, and its inherent relationship with the arts.” Find out more on www.thegourmand.co.uk.

Another Escape is “an independently published magazine that is inspired by individuals who are creative and inquisitive. We aim to be inspiring, uplifting and insightful, offering our readers the opportunity to discover something new.” The editorial and creative team are Rachel Maria Taylor and Jody Daunton. The latest volume is #2 in which “We celebrate the real people behind ideas, practices and processes; they are what make them interesting. Equally behind Another Escape there are real people too. And like those that we feature, we also have our quirks and imperfections – Another Escape is very much a work in progress; a journey to discovery, and we’d like to invite you along for the ride.” More info at www.anotherescape.com.

Cereal is a magazine “rooted in passions – for food, for travel. And for books too, with all the wonderful things they can teach us”. It’s a quarterly volume that contains detailed expositions of edible topics, travel destinations, as well as profiles on products, people and places – chosen because they’re relevant, interesting, or have simply caught the editor’s attention. The latest issue is #4 and features a nice article about corn. Find them on readcereal.com.

Cat People is a bilingual magazine (English/Japanese) featuring interviews and stories by cat-obsessed artists, designers, photographers and writers. Issue One just came out with four “cat people” and photo-essays by the Japanese photographer Takashi Homma. The magazine is created by graphic designer Jessica Lowe and photographer Gavin Green and it’s printed annually in 1000 copies. More details at catpeoplemagazine.com.

Riposte is a smart magazine for women. Each issue features five ideas, four meetings, three features, two essays and one icon. The editor-in-Chief is Danielle Pender, the designer is Shaz Madani, both from London. On their website you can find some articles and artwork from the magazine.

Capricious Magazine was founded by the Swedish photographer Sophie Mörner with the mission to “provide a solid platform for the work of emerging and underrepresented fine art photographers, thereby helping them to gain greater visibility and career opportunities.”. The magazine is published by Capricious Publishing who also publish RANDY, a zine that started in 2009 “to create something based on what we love and care about”. Find more about Capricious on www.ecapricious.com.

VERITIES is an anthropology of modern culture, examining the banality and beauty of everyday experience. With an experimental vision of contemporary culture, VERITIES is a curatorial clash of content, inspiring and challenging its readers. More on www.verities.co.uk.

Momma Tried is an independent ad-free conceptual nudie magazine that features literary and visual arts, subversive humor and non-heteronormative perspectives on sexuality. It comes from New Orleans and the first issue was released a few months ago. “Momma Tried is currently accepting submissions of writing, photography, and visual arts for our second issue. Works that contain nudity or sexual themes are welcome, but not a requirement. The deadline for Issue 2 is January 31st, 2014. We recommend reviewing past issues of the magazine before submitting.” More information on www.mommatriedmagazine.com.

Odiseo is a sexy biannual publication published by Folch Studio, a design studio from Barcelona. I’m sure that is pretty NSFW but as I’ve seen there are lots of interesting articles and photo-stories in it. Take a look on latest issu #3!

wearehere is a “quarterly travel magazine with a difference”. Each issue, a different city or district is presented with journalism, poetry and photography stories. The third issue, out in November 2013, focuses on Kathmandu, while the fourth issue, out in February 2014, will centre around Nana Plaza in Bangkok. Find out more on www.weareheremagazine.com.

The Opéra is a beautiful piece of art as I had the chance to see it and feel it. It’s an annual magazine for classic and contemporary nude photography from Stuttgart edited by Matthias Straub and designed by Yuan Peng and Jakob Wessinger. Find more on www.the-opera-magazine.com.

The Eyes – Europe & Photography is a new photography magazine from France available in print and on iPad released in October 2013. The first issue “looks at Europe through the wide prism of photography” and it has three parts: “in Imago , The Eyes unveils and questions the mutations currently undergone by European visual creation. Europa is an attempt at letting out the animated face of Europe, a huge territory to discover. Agora aims at bringing together a whole community of actors, all revolving around the reader as a recognized stakeholder.” Regarding the iPad version “The Eyes has been designed as an autonomous application: discover a brand new layout for an enriched audio and video experience”. Find more on www.theeyes.eu.

MADE Quarterly is a publication that documents the workings of the modern maker, including but not limited to industrial design, architecture, fashion, interior design, photography and the culinary world. MADE aims to get inside the heads of those individuals to find out how they do what they do, and what inspires them to create. Each issue will take a peek behind the scenes and offer the reader a rare opportunity to glimpse inside the minds of these inspiring individuals. More info on www.madequarterly.com.

LOVE ISSUE is an independent photographic magazine about love and issues. It started as an online magazine on issuu and after six online issues it became a printed magazine. The main editors of the magazine are Constantin Nimigean and Andreea Cioran. Issue #7 was about Dependence and Independence and it was published due a crowdfunding campaign. The latest issue, #8 Intimacy, is available for purchase if you send an e-mail to cnimigean@gmail.com. Currently, the website is under construction.

Apology contains literature, interviews, essays, reportage, humor, photography, and art. “It’s a general interest magazine for people whose general interests aren’t general. It’s a sophisticated alternative to sophomoric magazines; it’s a sophomoric alternative to sophisticated magazines. It’s a make-your-own-pithy-observation-that-goes-here magazine.” It was founded and is edited and art directed by Jesse Pearson, who has an editing magazines experience since 2000. It’s published roughly four times a year and is not on Twitter or Facebook but it has a blog on tumblr, you have to read the funny About text. The latest issue came out in Summer 2013.

1814 MAGAZINE is a limited edition, bi annual publication that focuses on photography, design, art, and culture. Recent issues have included artists as Massimo Vitali, Mel Roberts or Vivian Maier. The publication “encourages the evolution of photography, art and culture.” The latest issue, #6, features Ellen Rogers, Cristina de Middel, Chris Stein (cover) and many others.

LAW stands for Lives And Works and they say “It is the title of an umbrella, a bomb shelter for creative collaboration between the talented youth of today with grit in their teeth and something to say.” More details on www.law-mag.com.

All Hollow is an independent quarterly international magazine from Romania that merges fashion, photography and style in one product and “has set out to curate original and relevant content coming from regional and international creative communities that features fashion editorials, interviews with music bands, actors, and all sorts of other artists, and texts of short fiction.” The magazine is edited by Barna Nemethi, film director, writer, graphic designer and photographer. All Hollow is accepting submissions until February 10th. More info about the magazine on their website and facebook.

Stand is a quarterly photographic journal, advertisement-free, showcasing the work and thoughts of various contemporary photographers from all areas of the world. The main goal is to spread knowledge of the modern photography that the editors enjoy around the Detroit area and wherever else it may reach. The magazine is compiled and published by Andrew Colville and Aleksey Kondratyev with the help of assistant editor Ryan Debolski. The latest issue is #4 and it’s a collaboration with Urbanautica. “It examines the variability of animals’ roles within both contemporary and theoretical cultural spaces. The bodies of work presented here seek to inspect the fluid relationship humans maintain with other fauna and to ask whether this association is experiencing a paradigm shift as civilization rapidly advances. Each copy comes packaged with one of five posters and one of five postcards.” Follow them on standquarterly.com, they will be open for submissions soon, I suppose.

Blink is an independent monthly photography magazine. “It’s not just a typical magazine, it’s more like monthly art book project. The magazine serves as exhibition space that embraces every aspect of photography: from documentary to fashion, from contemporary to historical, from world-famous photographers to young talent.” The magazine is edited and designed by Kim Aram, a Korean native, who talks about his mission in an interview on aPhotoEditor. Blink magazine is accepting submissions. More info on www.blinkreflex.com.

Of the afternoon is a very special photo-magazine. “The first half of the magazine is designed to share the work that we feature in one of our soon-to-be regular London exhibitions; the second half of the magazine features interviews with some of the most exciting names in contemporary photography at the moment, along with studio visits from young creatives from across the globe.” The editor of the magazine is Phil Anderson, a passionate editor and photographer. All the information about the magazine on www.oftheafternoon.com.

Der Greif is a project for contemporary photography and literature with a focus on photography. It addresses itself to people with an affinity for image and text. It’s a print-magazine, online-platform, curatorial team and joint project for and with photographers and authors from all over the world. The magazine was founded in July 2008 by Felix von Scheffer and Simon Karlstetter. Recently they announced a very interesting call for entries that you should be aware. More details about the magazine on their website.

Darwin magazine is a bimonthly publication which provides a platform for unestablished and established photographers. Ryan Grimley and Harry Rose are the founders and editors behind the magazine and they are always looking for submissions. The latest issue, #4, is “bigger and better than what we have done before” and it’s printed in 100 copies. More information on www.darwin-magazine.com and tumblr.

Yvi Magazine is a new discovery and my recent item on the wishlist. Each issue of Yvi Magazine focuses on a central (social) theme seen from the perspective of art. A wide range of artistic visions on a pertinent social theme are brought together in the form of photography, design, architecture and visual art. “In Yvi Magazine #8: Liberation, we look at different kinds of liberation, means of escaping our body, spirit, fear, possessions and social positions, as well as from time, context, from being an artist, and indeed, liberation from ourselves. All of this is inextricably bound to the liberation that art can be, for its makers and for its viewers.” The editor is Welmer Keesmaat, a Dutch photographer and graphic designer. More info on Yvi Magazine.

dienacht is a magazine for photography, design and subculture. Photography is the main topic, but it also contains illustrators, graphic designers and articles about underground movies and music and photo books, fanzines and magazine reviews. The main editor and designer of the magazine is Calin Kruse, analogue photographer from Germany. dienacht is a bi-annual magazine edited by dienacht publishing in a limited edition of 1000 numbered copies, in English and German. More info on their website.

Oh Comely is a six times per year publication from London, a magazine “that makes people smile, full of quiet moments and stories”. In the latest issue #18, you can find tips for creativity, interviews with strong women and photographs of small museums. The editorial staff is looking for submissions, so feel free to write them. More info at www.ohcomely.co.uk.

Witty Kiwi is an independent publisher founded with the intention to promote photography through photobook, zine and magazine so as to give more weight to the ideas as well as having a tangible product. The founder and editor of the Witty Kiwi is Tommaso Parrillo, freelance documentary photographer from Italy. This is a new magazine with only one issue published and they have an open call for #2. The theme is Adolescence and the deadline is January 20^th. More details on www.wittykiwi.com.

romka is “a collective photo album in which people from all over the world share the stories behind their favorite photographs”. The publication started online in 2008 and currently there are more than 300 photos and stories from 45 countries in the archive. All the entries are curated by Joscha Bruckert, the founder and editor of the publication and latest issue #8 was published in 2000 copies. Visit romkamagazine.com for more info. What is cool about romka is that “If you can’t afford to buy the magazine, we’re happy to provide your local art school with a free copy and maybe even a free subscription. Just get in touch via donations@romkamagazine.com.”

piK magazine was founded and created by Isabelle Evertse, South African photographer based in France. Created in 2012, the magazine “constitutes a platform where the work of recognised photographers and those of emerging talents converge”. Each issue is part of a limited edition, 100 copies, independent and advert free. “PiK’s goal is to wade through the immensity of digital imagery, to sort and select, and to emphasize the creations and photographic stories for the readers.” The next issue of PiK it will be launched on January 30^th in Paris and everybody is invited!

LPV Magazine is published by the editor of LPV Online Magazine, Bryan Formhals who decided to stop the editorial content on both publications. The latest issue, #7 is also the last issue and can be viewed as PDF or purchased via MagCloud. Thank you, Bryan, for all the content that you provided us, I was a big fan of The Digest!

“Whether you contain a passionate interest towards sexuality as an aesthetic force or you just want a men’s lifestyle magazine that contains everything that men like, then Paradis is by far the best magazine to bring you everything that you would ever want and need out of a publication. From their beautiful photography catered towards men and women with any sexual preference to the publications intelligent and engaging articles towards a whole assortment of mostly men’s lifestyle issues, Paradis magazine has for years stood out as one of the most beloved, revered, and respected publications throughout France.” – this statement made my curious about this magazine that had its latest issue #6 published in June 2012. In the press release from their website, they write about 62 page portfolio of Juergen Teller, interview with Cindy Sherman, essay by Alain de Botton, portfolio of Marlene Marino and other very interesting subjects. See by yourself on www.paradismagazine.com.

GUP is the Guide for Unique Photography and has been founded in 2005, it’s a quarterly magazine edited by Erik Vroons and published by Peter Bas Mensink and the x-publishers from Amsterdam. They have a big amount of quality content on their website and facebook and they accept submissions only for the online platform.

Aesthetica combines dynamic content with compelling critical debate, exploring the best in contemporary art and culture. It’s a bimonthly publication from UK and on the website they have a very useful artists directory to browse. Find out more about the magazine on www.aestheticamagazine.com

foam is one of the most important European photography magazine. Foam is for photographers, picture editors, designers and all those who have a passion for photography. The quarterly magazine is published by the Foam Museum from Amsterdam, the latest issue, #37, is “different from the norm in that it is entirely devoted to the work of a single artist. It is given over to a man who is undoubtedly a pioneer, even a visionary: William Klein.” Find more on www.foam.org.

Fw: is an independent organisation from Amsterdam, initiated in 2004 that talks about projects, publications, exhibitions, lectures and gatherings between photographers, writers and curators. Among their activities with workshops and the bookshop, they publish the magazine called also Fw: and the latest issue’s name is Off the Wall. More information at fw-photography.nl

Voice of Photography is the most exotic photography magazine that I’ve discovered, yet. Based in Taiwan since 2011, VOP featured contemporary photographers and artists, as well as interviews with artists, gallerists, curators, and publishers and other related professionals worldwide, to share and explore the creativity and philosophy of photography. Wei-I Lee is the editor in chief and the latest issue is #10 and it’s sold out. Maybe because the main feature was about Chang Chao-Tang, one of the most important photographers and curators of Taiwan, whose works are exhibited at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum. An interview with the artist can be read on Invisible Photographer website. Find VOP on www.vopmagazine.com.

Hotshoe is a six times per year photography magazine from UK. It also has a huge resourceful website with book, galleries and featured portfolios. Follow them on www.hotshoeinternational.com

COLORS is one of my favorites magazines from all time. I bought two issues from them and I’m preparing for another buying of the latest two issues, Looking at Art and Protest. The publication was created by photographer Oliviero Toscani and art director Tibor Kalman in 1991 to show the world to the world. The message has remained the same: diversity is good. More about this beautiful and perfectly drawn magazine on their website.

125 magazine is published twice a year and each issue has a “300 page tribute to creative freedom and the ultimate luxury magazine, a must-have on any coffee table.” Edited by Perry Curties, a London based photographer and designed by Rob Crane, the magazine has recently released a “10 years of 125 magazine limited edition” in 1250 copies. More info about the publication on Wikipedia and www.125magazine.com.

6 mois “reconnects journalism with photography”. A publication that should be in every photojournalist hands. Edited by a experienced French team of editors and journalists, 6 mois is a bi-annual, advertising free, that exist and develops with the support of the readers. The latest issue, #6, was published in the Autumn of 2013 and it features, among many interesting articles, a photographic essay about Petrut Calinescu’s photographs. More details on www.6mois.fr.

Camera magazine is a publication that needs more attention. The first issue was published in June 1922 by the engineer Adolf Herz and the book-publisher C. J. Bucher. “Our magazine will support artistic photography. We thought it expedient to show our readers an artist’s work through ample selections of good-quality reproductions. Artists from all countries will be sharing their pictures. Hereon in every issue we will present eight pages of good reproductions. Participating artists will present their art styles in original essays. Articles on technical photographic subjects, written by authors the best in this field, will appear in the technical section. In brief reports we will comment on all new developments so that our readers can obtain an up-to-date view of photography. We invite all photographers and researchers of all countries who would like to bring technical information to our readers, to submit their articles. We will periodically conduct contests to encourage developing artists, and the best entries will receive a monetary award. We hope our efforts will be conducive to the high aims of artistic photography and that our readers will support us.”. With many changes in the editorial staff, the magazine was taken over by a publishing house in 1973 that saw no interest in continue the printing of Camera but they continue to print it until December 1981, before the 60^th anniversary. The return of the Camera Magazine happened in January 2013 and four new issue have been published so far. We wish them a long second life!

Aperture magazine was founded in 1952 by Minor White, Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, Barbara Morgan, Dody Weston Thompson, Nancy Newhall and Beaumont Newhall. Since 2009, the magazine is run by Aperture Foundation, a non-profit arts institution who “connects the photo community and its audiences with the most inspiring work, the sharpest ideas, and with each other—in print, in person, and online.” More information and lots of photographic history facts on www.aperture.org.

British Journal of Photography. No need to say more. It’s a must, even if you buy it only once, you have to see how the world’s longest running photography magazine looks like. Established in 1854, BJP is now available on the digital news stands, too. The latest issue is about the Ones to Watch in 2014! Hopefully I will make a list with the Ones to Watch from Romania in 2014. See about the BJP on www.bjp-online.com.

European Photography is a visual guide through some of the most important contemporary photographers from Europe. It was founded on January 1^st, 1980, by Andreas Müller-Pohle, a Berlin based media artist and publisher. Find more info at www.equivalence.com.

photoworks is promoting “engagement with photography and new thinking on its place within contemporary culture”. They publish new work, write on photography and produce exhibitions, books, participation and learning projects and events. The latest issue #20 is the first Photoworks Annual promoting photographers and writers under the Family Politics theme. More info on www.photoworks.org.uk.

 

And hopefully these are not all! Please, share if you know other photography related magazines (in English) by commenting to this article or send them by e-mail at cnimigean[at]gmail.com.
Thank you for being patience about my obsession with magazines!