Soft Season
An editorial direction for a fictional journal about everyday rituals.
- Scope
- Art direction / Editorial
- Year
- 2025
- Role
- Concept, writing & art direction
in a hurry.Art direction / Editorial
A slower editorial rhythm
Soft Season began as a question about pace. Could a journal move slowly without becoming precious or difficult to read? I imagined an issue built around small repeatable rituals: repairing a sleeve, making a table, walking the same route in different weather. The art direction needed to create pauses while still giving readers a clear route through the material. The first prototype was a sequence of paper spreads rather than a cover image.
The cover as a threshold
The cover uses a short statement and a generous field of pale pink. It does not attempt to summarize every article. The title is placed in relation to the edge rather than centered as an emblem. Inside, the type becomes quieter and the margins establish a consistent place for captions. The visual system is intentionally limited so that a photograph, a drawing or a long piece of writing can each receive the space it needs.
Making room for different voices
A recurring essay format sits beside shorter observations. Long pieces use a steady column and clear section breaks. Short pieces can occupy only a small part of a spread. The blank area is not a missing asset; it changes the pace between one voice and the next. I wrote sample text and made original typographic plates to test those relationships before introducing any borrowed photography.
The useful constraint
The most productive constraint was refusing to decorate the transitions. A page turn is already a transition. A change in scale can already signal a new subject. The final direction uses those ordinary editorial tools rather than effects layered on top. The journal is fictional and the portfolio presents a self-directed exercise, not a published issue. The study demonstrates a way of organizing attention, with enough specificity that another designer could continue the system.
An ordinary day,
looked at again.
Notes on repetition, repair and paying attention.