Response: Historical Design Perspective

The purpose of the historical design project was to research an era of a magazine and critique its design. I selected McCall in the 1960s. It was interesting to look at the history of the magazine and put it into context. I was the only person to look at McCalls, but there was another one of the "Seven Sisters" presented. Ladies Home Journal was competition for McCalls.

Vogue in the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s were all represented during the presentations. That was neat to how the magazine's design changed over the those forty years. Not only do current design trends affect the visual style of the magazine, but the changing hands from editor to editor really affect the look.

Here are a couple images from McCalls to note. McCalls used a lot of illustration with fiction pieces, fun full-page fashion photos, and played with typography that was incorporated into images.