Practical Research: Cultural Publications

For many magazines and especially independent zines it is important to capture the nature of the niche audiences they are targeted towards. The context of the subject then helps to inform the design, perhaps most obvious in punk zines produced in the 70s-80s where anarchic and chaotic attitude is reflected in the disorganised layout, rushed hand rendered type, shocking/offensive content and imagery.   

The zines were produced on a low budget, this meant they were rudimentary in the print methods using photocopiers to reproduce and cheap newsprint printed in black and white.  

In contrast, electronic music magazines of the same era where far more organised and structured using digital techniques to produce them which reflected the music and artists they featured in the articles. The names of the publications also represented the precise and robotic style of the music.