August
08
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Un magazine reinvents wheel: Issue 8.1
Artists and curators are creative. When an artist and a curator work as Editors, it’s creativity squared to the power of six. The latest addition of un magazine sees all this creativity surge forth, in a fountain-like flow of creative creativity, bringing into focus the role of editor in relation to contributors.
The magazine starts at page 47 and progresses backwards to the middle where it hits page 1, then works its way from 2 to 48. This style of publishing is strangely entertaining. Like a Magic Eye painting, you have to persevere with it and develop some new skills. Fruity.
The editors, whose names are proudly blocked out here (despite being widely printed in publicity and call out advertising) proudly declare in what might be the editorial:
“please note eight point one is not about our dicks
it is not about us it’s not about
enough said”
– Blank and Blank
Every second page is blank; no writing, no photos, no illustrations, just the designer colour blocking. The paid advertisements can be illustrated, the message being if you’re paying you can get whatever you want, which is accurate enough.
There are no proper nouns in the writing. A proper noun is a name. I had to look that up. Why can’t the proper nouns participate in this writing, alongside the adjectives and the doing words? This is word discrimination and I’m feeling uncomfortable now.
The best feature article is What it’s like to be a Rich, Famous Guy’s Ghostwriter on page 11, which is towards the middle of the mag near the Contents page. I can’t say who wrote it because names are proper nouns. There are clues and it’s someone who David Walsh wanted to get it on with.
Un 8.1 is an art magazine with no images except for ads. This radical vision of magazine design and editorship hurts. But does anyone actually read art magazines? I’d rather just check out the pretty pictures. Of the art.
un magazine, out now
un magazine, out now
listening to readings from un mag
Danielle Freakley and Suzette Wearne
Linda Tegg
Claire Lambe prepares for ‘Spring’
Steve Eland
nattysolo 