The New York Times Magazine "Ideas" issue, 12/14/03

This is the third annual “Year in Ideas” issue of the New York Times Magazine, in which the magazine looks back at the year through the unusual lens of ideas. We sent out a team of researchers and reporters to investigate the latest thinking in every subject imaginable, from war to cosmetics, from medicine to politics. Then we took this vast intellectual stew and presented it with encyclopedia-style graphics. We chose photographers and illustrators whose work embodies the values of a fine visual dictionary and whose solutions explain problems with wit and precision. For the third year in a row, the photographer Rodney Smith created a unique portfolio of images that are inspired by hare-brained schemes and bold inventions. We hired the graphics team +ISM and Moonrunner Design to create a series of explanatory diagrams and illustrations to clarify the more scientific examples, and the artist Barbara Kelley to produce dictionary-style likenesses of people featured in the pages.

The entire magazine is designed to resemble a large dictionary, with trompe l'oeil bindings and alphabet indexes. The material is organized alphabetically, headlines are written as encyclopedia entries, and the typography is inspired by these listings. It is a simple, clear format that operates with subtle precision and allows the wit of the entries and the charm of the illustrations to carry the reader through the stunt. The cover, one of Rodney Smith’s confections (and inspired by the first entry, “Airborne Humans”), portrays a wacky aviator, dressed in carbon-fiber fins, poised to leap off the edge.

Beautiful, funny, simple treatment, touching. Consistent photographic style. It’s a nice blend of photography, typography and engravings.