Michael Heathershaw


Graphic Design and Art Direction



REDESIGNING A LITTLE STYLE AND SUBSTANCE
FOR THE MODERN GENTLEMAN



This has got to be one of my favorite projects I've tackled while in school for a number of reasons. The premise was to take a favorite magazine of ours and give it a little face-lift. I found it especially challenging as I'm already a big fan of the design and layout of Nobleman's current catalog.


I decided to take a much more classic take on the "magazine" style while also updating the typography with something a little more modern. When it comes to magazines it's all about the layout and organizing a massive amount of information in an elegant and effective way.


I wanted to maintain the feeling of a premium magazine geared towards the most gentlemanly among us. Minimalism, elegance and modern design were my main focus when giving a few spreads a new look.



NOBLEMAN MAGAZINE REDESIGN



THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART



This is it. This is the most important page on any magazine. It needs to have strong typography, elegant photography and a super productive layout. I loved the challenge of fitting all this info on one page while maintaining the minimalism I wanted from the beginning.



A FRESH CUT



I can't think of a more challenging task than trying to find a set of fonts and a layout that looks just as sharp as David Beckham with a fresh cut.



ALL LAID OUT



I knew I needed to keep every page interesting and engaging while also upholding the same basic layout. Bold photos, easy to follow body copy and just a splash of color is all you need to keep people flipping eagerly page by page.



WHAT I WAS UP AGAINST



Like I mentioned in the beginning Nobleman already has one of my favorite covers to look at in a book store and they really stick by that minimalism. I challenged myself to take a completely different approach while still feeling like my cover could sit in the Nobleman archives.



NOW THAT"S NOBLE



It all starts with the masthead. I wanted to keep the typography as clean as possible because I knew how much text would be on one page. Gotham Thin with a little twist just works so well.



DOESN'T HE LOOK GOOD



I decided to use a full-color image as the main cover photo in contrast to the majority of other monochromatic photos in the article as the colors just seemed to work so well.



KEPT IT CONSISTENT



It was essential for me to maintain a consistent alignment across every page. A simple three-column system seemed to fit best paired with just enough negative space.



SHOW ME THAT TYPE



I've always loved a fun introduction to any article with some creative and simplistic use of typography. It tells you what's going on and does it in an interesting way.



LET IT FLOW



The best articles are always set up in a way that keeps the reader reading effortlessly. Just enough images, negative space, and drop quotes to keep that eye moving.



CHANGE IT UP



Nothing helps keep and the audience engaged than switching up a layout. Throughout this project, I really pushed myself to try a bunch of different techniques to showcase just how interesting and diverse a magazine can be.



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