Is putting out a magazine in 2010 an act of rebellion or foolishness or both? While I've been a lifelong fan of the paste and paper periodical, it would be no overstatement to say that recently magazines have seemed doomed to suffer the same fate as pet rocks. Everyone predicts Apple will release the Christ Tablet on January 27, and some wonder if this will possibly be a positive boon to the publishing industry (if not the paper portion of it). Or will it be only another nail in the magazine coffin?
2009 saw the release of two new magazines that were so in tune with my current tastes they were practically bespoke.
Inventory is the latest project of fellow Canadian Ryan Willms', previously of the now defunct h(y)r collective. Willms made the switch to develop a "brand and project [he] can grow into the future." It's a well-crafted affair, with all the contemporary hallmarks of a quality magazine - heavy paper, beautiful photography, and a careful eye to design.
It's hard not to see the influence of Monocle, especially in the typographical choices, and Willms' is more than familiar with the magazine, having written an article on Victoria for a recent issue. Similarly, Inventory boasts a full compliment of collaborations, and stocks a store full of them and other carefully chosen pieces. The subjects covered in issue one will be familiar to readers of this blog: Duluth Packs, Engineered Garments (my current favourite label), fashion spreads with Woolrich and Penfield and Alexander Olch.
It would be hard to find fault with Inventory, considering it exists at all and is such a wonderful object. But since everyone that I know who has read the magazine has made the same comment, I feel obliged to point this out. For all the passion clearly evident in its pages, the writing in the magazine is strangely reserved. It borders on being merely factual. This is especially odd since the writers have an obvious love of their subject matter, and seem, at least from a technical standpoint, to be perfectly capable.
It's as if in their desire to sound like unbiased reporters they have forgotten the reasons they wanted to report on these things in the first place. Here is Ryan Willms on the fascinating Daiki Suzuki of Engineered Garments:
His passion for materials has created a positive atmosphere throughout each collection that makes getting dressed something to look forward to....All of the pants this season come with a drawstring at the bottom which add (sic) to the casual feel and allow (sic) you to play with the proportions a little bit more.
Hopefully later issues will feature the same passion seen in the photographs and design in the writing.
Where Inventory comes up just short, Fire & Knives absolutely excels. It is, in every way, the perfect magazine. Excellent layouts, wonderful size, and writing that crackles and bites and, yes, has an abundance of flavour. For Fire & Knives, it's all about the writing, and the first issue is crammed full of passionate, inspired (and inspiring) words.
It's hard to pick a favourite, but if I had to it would be "The Devil's Herb" by Felicity Cloake, with amazing illustrations by Harriet Russell. A discussion of the desire to and dangers of cooking with tobacco, it is at turns funny, a little tragic, and above all informative without being pedantic.
