The low-budget Journal of Aesthetics & Protest 5 (JOA&P5) is a freshly minted redesign of a self-appointed “weirdo think tank,” which presents intersections of art, activism, media theory and criticism in a periodical format. The goal of the design was to present a smart, clean, yet subversive face for a scrappy but astute editorial collective of artists and curators. JOA&P5’s balance of typographic exuberance and restraint represents the playful-yet-rigorous voices of artists, activists and theorists contained within. Tight and loose systems operate simultaneously. Layout shifts engage readers with texts; subtly expressive typography responds to the content to maintain visual interest. Text is printed 1/1 on uncoated paper with a 4/4 image section at the back on glossy coated stock.

The title wraps around from front to back, inviting interaction. The stark white cover features bold “black” letter-spaced lowercase sans serif type that visually vibrates around the edges, introducing the issue’s themes of speech and performance, resonance and dissonance. The black isn’t really black, but is built up from cyan, magenta and yellow plates, intentionally off-registered, to evoke the activity of the voices found inside. The cover’s pristine white, uncoated paper was left uncoated so it would eventually show smudges, coffee rings and finger marks over time—traces of use that document change and personalization of the book through the act of reading.

I applaud the bold new approach to this journal’s cover. The “non-aligned” colors and type that spill across the edge to the back speak of both aesthetics and protest.