A quick trip to Canada offers more than a chance to visit with my dear friend and colleague, Dr. Pegie Stark Adam, and to enjoy the magnificent hospitality from her and her husband Stuart.  While enjoying the pastoral surroundings of Pegie and Stuart’s home, complete with terrace al fresco dining, good champagne, and, yes, an early morning run through the countryside, I also had a chance to become reacquainted with the National Post, a newspaper where design is spelled with a capital D, but functionality seems to be the strategy for every page.

True, the logo of the National Post, and all its inside page headers appear as a vertical unit on the page, but it works, allowing for the rest of the canvas of the page to be utilized for stories, and, for a top of the page ad. Indeed, today’s front page carries a “banner” ad, in the style of online editions.

While a balcony concept serves as the top unit of each page, usually for editorial content, it can also house an American Express ad, as we see here.  The balconies are all the same dimension, and allow for interesting eye traffic horizontally across the pages.  The stories in those balconies pull the reader right in, and do not compete with the rest of what is on the page. These are the type of headlines one finds in those balconies: AS it turns out, less than a second’s worth of Janet’s nipple isn’t that bad, or Amy Winehouse’s Blake to remain incarcerated for four months.  Photos of Janet and Amy accompany the short pieces.

The balconies are also used as headers, as in WORLD, EDITORIAL, LETTERS.

But when the American Express appears there, it is less intrusion, and more a surprise visit by someone you know and welcome.

Many US dailies need to take a page from the National Post’s innovative approach.

AN ELEMENT WE DON’T LIKE: The National Post’s design is 99% excellent, but the bylines are too bold and a little “brutal” for the single column stories; they do work excellently well in those column sigs, but it appears that the same size for both, a standard byline, and a columnist logo, is a bit out of proportion in our view.

WE SEND YOU: www,nationalpost.com

DINNERS WE ENJOY: Pegie’s red skinned potatoes (prepared with a touch of lemon and fresh mint , and Portuguese sea salt) are one of the summer’s surprises. One could smell the minty aroma the moment she placed the bowl of potatoes on the table. Stuart’s grilled steaks, the fresh asparagus and tomatoes, then the strawberry shortcake and vanilla ice cream provided a grand finale.  Bubblies and white wine were constant companions as well. Not to mention dinner conversation that ranged from Obama’s prospects, to the techniques of a ballet dancer’s stretching to Yale’s secret societies.

WHERE IS MARIO? Spent the day working with Dr. Pegie Stark Adam and Reed Reibstein on our Yale Daily News redesign. The YDN will launch its new look in September, just on time for the Yale University’s Class of 2012 to get a copy upon arrival on campus.  Soon off to Oklahoma City.

When Massimo Gentile assumed the position of design director at Genoa’s Il Secolo XIX, he inherited a newspaper that had a sense of organization (perhaps too much!), a good typographic scheme, and very intensely local journalism.  What was lacking, says Massimo, was a bit of excitement, not just for the big stories, but for everyday.  Remember that Massimo was coming from the colorful and energetic Folha de S. Paulo, a newspaper where the front page is surprisingly fresh everyday, especially in its use of navigators.

True, Genoa is not Sao Paulo. Italy is not Brazil. However, Massimo and I discussed strategy and decided that we could incorporate changes in an evolutionary manner —-not a complete redesign. This required a greater role for “design” in the overall thinking that went into putting Il Secolo together each day; Massimo inmersed himself in the newsroom, preaching visual conceptualization, and trying his hand at little changes. “We are still doing this today. It is not easy. But we have come a long way. Notice our special treatment of the Ingrid Betancourt rescue, for example,” says Massimo.

In addition, as shown here, Massimo redefined the presentation of stand alone photos, which are a daily Page One staple of Il Secolo. And, says Massimo, we had to make these newsy photo items pop on the page. Color was utilized on the type, for example.

His next detail evolution was to give the vertical navigators more contrast through texture.

Il Secolo XIX of today is a fresh, inviting product. “But,” says Massimo, “it is still work in progress. We wait for the next big story, to see how that will play, or to try new approaches.”

WHERE IS MARIO: Flying from Florida to Ottawa, Canada.

I have worked with the team at Il Secolo XIX in Genoa, Italy for about 14 years. During that time, the newspaper has been redesigned twice. I remember that in our first redesign we had to create a sense of page architecture, new grids, introduction of color, new typography, and a sense of order; the second redesign, five years ago, took us to a narrower web, a review of page architecture, and a new system of page one navigation.

Enter new art director, Massimo Gentile, former design director of Folha de Sao Paulo, and now Il Secolo XIX is changing and evolving from week to week.

In the next two postings, I would like to show how this tweaking and/or transformation is aimed at giving more power to page one, creating a navigational system that sells the goodies in the feature sections, while devoting a column to headlines that readers MUST READ if they want to be fully informed.

The key, says Massimo, is “to have a good sense of hierarchy, and to go for bolder headlines.”

Notice how the Il Secolo XIX front page compared to the national Italian dailies when news broke of the China earthquake.  Larger photos, bolder headlines, showed the importance of the story.

WHERE IS MARIO? Enjoying my grandchildren at Belleair Beach, Florida; building castles in the sand (which last a few minutes up before the kids or the waves tear them down), watching the most spectacular sunsets over the Gulf of Mexico, and answering the type of questions that only 3 year old boys ask: Abo, why do seagulls dive to catch fish, then fly away? Where does the sun go when it melts into the sea? Stay tuned for the answers!

It may become slightly more difficult to sell that piano, get a new pet, find a job or rent an apartment if a prediction by a group that explores 25 of America that may soon be just memory comes to pass.

The series includes newspaper classifieds as item #23. Yes, the family farm was number one. News magazines and TV news was number three.

The entry reads: “The Internet has made so many things obsolete that newspaper classified ads might sound like just another trivial item on a long list. But this is one of those harbingers of the future that could signal the end of civilization as we know it. The argument is that if newspaper classifieds are replaced by free online listings at sites like Craigslist.org and Google Base, then newspapers are not far behind them. And if we lose our daily newspapers, or they get severly damaged by cutbacks, then we lose our independent check on our government and we risk living in tyranny.
Newspaper are, of course, dying a slow death caused by cutbacks, with circulation down 3.6% on weekdays and 4.6% on Sundays in 2008 so far. The latest study of readership shows more declines among 18-24-year-olds, and another study says that people in that age group turn first to TV for their news, and to print newspapers a distant fifth.”

Classifieds have been a staple of the daily newspaper since its beginnings, providing much needed information for readers in need of everything from a job to a house or a refrigerator.  Classifieds have always provided hefty revenue, while bringing in readers whose main interest has been the classified section.  Weekend editions, especially, are especially designed to accommodate large number of pages. Large metropolitan dailies such as Folha de Sao Paulo, in Brazil, carry several classified sections to cover individual topics such as real estate, automobiles, jobs, etc.  However, the US newspapers developed classified pages with sophisticated navigation, well organized sections by topic, and, lately in large enough type that invited readers and made reading more pleasurable.

While it is true that a lot of the traditional classified content is now available online, nobody should rush out to attend the funeral of the classified page.  In 2000, about 60% of the US popularion owned a computer (roughly 168.5 million people). Even that impressive figure leaves out the 40% that still may rely on a printed classified section to suit their needs. We will see more cooperation between print/online classified operations.

I am surprised not to see “stock listings” or “television program listings” on the list of things that will disappear. These are , indeed, already vanishing, since those interested in that information get it either from computers, or, in the case of television listings, by simply flipping through the menu of channels available on their TV sets.  The content of classified, however, generates a broader customer base.  Especially in Latin America, Asia and Africa, classified sections continue to grow.

And, if as I predict, the American newspaper will be published less frequently, or only as a mega weekly, then classifieds are likely to play a vital role.

WE SEND YOU: http://vanessaneupmann.blogspot.com/2008/07/top-25-things-vanishing-from-america.html

WHERE IS MARIO? Enjoying a long weekend with family at the beach condo, Belleair Beach, Florida.

There I stood, in the middle of the atrium of my house, talking to Robert John Dean, with whom I have the pleasure to work on some “rethinking” of the interior spaces of the place we have called Villa Tortuga since we built it 24 years ago.  The “tortuga” name is there because just when we were ready to break ground and to start construction, the inspectors found plenty of turtle eggs in the back of the property, close to the Hillsborough River, and so plans had to be changed —-should I say “rethought”–as I could not build a pool in what is officially described as protected wetlands. Of course, the plans were redrawn and we went from anger to admiration as we began to enjoy the beauty of the century-old tress in the back, and the presence of cardinals and other colorful birds, not to mention the occasional alligator that comes to rest by the river, never, so far, daring to come too close to the house.

Robert and I have worked side by side as we rethink the spaces of Villa Tortuga, look at artwork and move and replace furniture. In most cases, we are working with existing items. My wife Maria and I had a lot of fun drawing the original plans of the house with architect Wade Setliff.  It has been described as a fun house, a party house, and, for us, it was the home where we raised four children and welcomed several grandchildren.

Maria died last January. ,I have worked with Robert to give the house that she loved a new style. Maria loved antiques; I prefer a more contemporary, minimalist look.

The project has taught me much. As a designer, I watch Robert closely, and try to see how the work he does parallels what I do.  Today our conversation was about that importnat moment when a decision has to be made, or, better yet, the moment when it is imperative that someone makes a decision for the project to proceed successfully.

“You can discuss a room, a piece of art or a sculpture only so much, then somebody has to decide and execute the idea,” he said.  How true. We both agreed that the worst projects–newspaper or house—- is one where the design is by committee, nobody seems to decide, and therefore the decision is made.

As we turned to placing several paintings by the late Ecuadorian artist, Guayasamin, on the big wall of the atrium, Robert and his associate, Roger Duffala, first sketched the concept on paper (not necessarily a Moleskin notebook, but I forgive them!), then discussed it with me. This is what I call “the sketching phase” with my clients.  In this case, I am the client. Robert and Roger showed me their sketch and I saw how they had decided to mix other artists with Guayasamin, something that had never occurred to me. In confess more than a bit of apprehension.

I felt like that editor whose page 2 content I am suggesting be moved to Section B, and he knows that this may be the thing to do, but he cannot imagine it, and has never done it that way, and is totally afraid, and skeptical. I know I conveyed that feeling to Robert and Roger. So I took a step back, and remembered the number of times a good idea has been killed at that sketching stage by an editor who did not want to see it even tested.

The thought of me acting like that editor of my worst nightmares made me react quickly: “Sure,” I said, “go ahead, give it a try.”

Two hours later, there it was. Yes, Guayasamin suddenly met Cuban artist Orestes Larios Zaak at an intersection between Quito and Havana, but who cared? It looked magnificent as if the two artists had planned to meet on my wall, share a mojito and discuss the plight of the South American Indian (Guayasamin’s theme) and Cuban eco systems, which is for what Larios is world renowned.

Robert tried to describe how wonderful it looked. “You don’t need to say a word, “ I said. It is spectacular. I am just sorry that I have had those pieces for 15 years and never thought of displaying them that way.

What designer has not heard the editor who suddently sees the idea on paper and exclaims: “Wow, how come I never thought of that?”

By the end of today, all the art work that I have owned for years had found a new spot on the walls of the house. In the process, each had assumed a new life, a different personality. I took a look around the house and it felt like I was attending a class reunion: old friends, seen differently.

In the process of making these changes in my house, I have seen myself on the other side of the designing process: listening to the expert, evaluating ideas, conquering my fears, trying desperately to abandon preconceived notions, and sometimes catching myself acting like some of the editors whom I have thought of as non receptive.

The new Villa Tortuga should be ready for launch sometime in mid August. I recommend the exercise to all designers out there.

And, yes, Robert found two or three ceramic pieces that Maria had made and they are now right at the entrance of the house. Maria would be proud.

WE SEND YOU:
http://www.rjdean.com/villa001.html
http://www.larioszaak.com/en_int_elar_premios.htm
http://www.guayasamin.com/pages/index.html

AD WEEK: The International Herald Tribune is one of many European newspapers utilizing the double page, inverted U-shape ad configuration. The ad rises strongly from the bottom of the page, with editorial content surrounding it; in most cases, the advertiser pays for the equivalent of the two full pages. Visibility for such ads is strong. Although the Herald Tribune is printed in a broadsheet format, the same inverted U-shape strategy can be utilized across two pages of tabloid or Berliner format newspapers.

WHERE IS MARIO? Teaching a session for the Summer Fellowship Program at The Poynter Institute, St. Petersburg Florida

France’s Les Echos occasionally does a half wrap around his front page, as seen in this example, allowing for a glimpse of what is on page one, but giving the ad, especially this one in deep red, primary attention.  Other newspapers , such as the International Herald Tribune, do full wrap around advertising during special times of the year, as during Fashion Week.

Other configurations that take us into more innovative ways of presenting the ads include:

The Belt ad, where the advertising message cuts across the middle or lower part of the page, with editorial content above and below it.

The top of the page ad: where the usual baseboard ad is taken to the very top, with content directly under.

The book end ads: two vertical one or two column towers for a product that usually buys both units. Editorial content is placed between the two “book end” structures.

These ad configurations pay a special premium, as they obviously receive more attention than the traditionally positioned ads which readers may choose to ignore.

WHERE IS MARIO: At home in Tampa, Florida.

For years, newspapers have displayed advertising at the bottom of pages or in those awful staircases that rise from the corners of the pages, left and right. The world of editorial and that of advertising have been kept totally separate.  When newspapers began publishing online editions, and because of the smaller canvas of the screen, advertising and editorial content were made to coexist.

Indeed, they have coexisted happily everafter. Users are smart and can tell the difference between and ad and editorial content. Of course, the word ADVERTISEMENT is placed in small type over the ad, just in case.

Now, printed publications take note of how online editions place ads, and begin to apply some of the same configurations to print. The result, what I call “silent ads” , advertisement specifically placed in the middle of summaries, navigational devices, and even columns of briefs, where the traffic is heaviest, and the ad noticed the most.

Advertisers pay a premium for a silent ad, which is usually only a “brand name” advertising. Readers see a brand name, that is all; no message, no text, only the logo of a company. Online, the website of the advertiser is one click away; in print, it is a matter of recognition.

Examples follow here. Silent ads are most popular with European and Asian newspapers, but have not taken off in the United States. It is a matter of time before this happens, I am sure.

TIPS: How to best use silent ads:
1. In vertical columns where “finger reading” prevails–such as in navigational units.
2. Also in the middle of a briefs columns.
3. Always place silent ads between elements, never at the top or very bottom of a column; their impact lies in their placement in the middle, allowing for more eyeballing effect.
4. Silent ads in vertical columns should not be deeper than 1.5 inches, so that they do not become an obstacle that the reader has to jump over to continue reading.

TOMORROW: A variety of ad configurations that break away from routine positioning.

WHERE IS MARIO? Home in Tampa, Florida!

The U.S. dailies are less likely to experiment with advertising configuration and strategies than their counterparts worldwide.
True, we now have adopted the “page one ad” in dailies across the nation, including The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, which do so routinely, without detracting from the overall look of their front pages. However, these same dailies are slower to adopt other types of advertising strategies that will discuss here:

The Promotional Ad
The Silent Ad
The Island Ad
Odd configurations
The Wrap Around Ad
TODAY: The Promotion Ad Campaign
European and Asian newspapers conduct almost daily promotion of products and services, starting on page one.  We see examples here from The Telegraph, of London, as well as Daily Xpress, of Bangkok, where one of the “promo” navigational units on page one is devoted to sponsorship ads.
In the case of the Daily Xpress, the agreement is that the newspaper runs the Macdonald’s ad in the teaser slot for around a month.
Leroy Sylk, art director of the Xpress, writes that this type of
ad helps both Xpress and Macdonald’s by working in three ways:
1. it informs Xpress readers that at any time they can pick up Xpress for free at any of Macdonald’s Bangkok outlets in case they can’t get a copy at their regular/usual point
2. Daily Xpress gets more visibility/exposure to more readers by being displayed at Macdonald’s outlets.
3. It helps the advertiser itself get more publicity.

TOMORROW: Silent ads: what we can learn from online advertising strategies.

WHERE IS MARIO? Working in Miami and visiting my mother here in the city where I grew up after arriving from Cuba in 1962 and the one I will always call home.  Driving east on Flagler Street, I am forever mesmerized by the beauty of the building that houses my alma mater, Miami Senior High School (Class of 1965). Considered an architectural treasure, MHS was added to the National Register of Historic Sites in 1990.  The windows and doors of the Miami High’s building have always captured the attention of photographers and architects. The style has been described as French Romanesque, or resembling a church from the Normandy region. However, experts identify MHS’s architecture as Spanish Colonial or Mediterranean.
Go here.

However, it is our personal experiences inside a building that transcend the structure itself. For me, Miami High represents my first smell, taste and feel for my adopted country, the United States; it was here that I savored that giant victory that was reading my first book cover to cover in English (“You Can’t Go Home Again,” by Thomas Wolfe), or discovering the beauty of my new language with the help of my English teacher, Miss Angela Congelo, who took the time, after school, to help me understand and to enjoy the poetry of Emily Dickinson, an enjoyment that is still with me 45 years later. Not to mention that my first journalistic scribbling, in halted English, took place at the school newspaper, Miami High Times.

With the help of the late Miss Congelo I memorized many lines from Dickinson’s poems, as part of learning English. One that I remember often is: “This is my letter to the World that never wrote to me”.  If Dickinson had lived in this age of blogging, I am sure the world would have written to her.

By the way, Mr. Wolfe, you CAN go home again—to relive the memories.
I just did.

In his Editor’s Note, Brian Kelly tells his readers:

“That new logo you see on the cover is not just a cosmetic makeover. It signals a new era for U.S. News. We’re changing the way we think of the magazine, and it’s going to affect you, our valued readers. Among the changes, we’ll be publishing every other week.”

A step bolder than the new logo, for sure; in my view, this is the start of a series of dramatic changes on the look, size and frequency of publication not just for magazines, but newspapers as well.  It is all about coming to terms with how different media within a publishing house deliver news and information. Online has the time advantage, and print will exist to provide a more in-depth and analytical type of journalism, with the addition of the kind of “intellectual content” that we have already discussed in this blog. See http://garciamedia.com/blog/articles/the_less_may_be_more_dailies_are_here/

Kelly writes that “It’s clear from talking to our readers and advertisers that the way we deliver information in print has to change in a world where news is updated every minute at websites like our own usnews.com. Indeed, our audience on line is now more than five million people a month—almost three times that of the magazine.”

After experimenting with double issues, which have proven successful, Kelly says that he and his team have decided to increase the number of double issues to 26, converting to an every-other-week schedule by 2009.

Phrases such as “to explore”, “more depth” and “more details” abound in Kelly’s note to readers of his magazine.  They are good guidelines for newspapers to consider as well.

Marshall Matlock, Professor Emeritus, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University, who shared this information with me, adds a comment:

“It’s timely and, for me, very telling about the print media and the direction we are surely heading. It’s the direction that seems to be gaining momentum as publications look at their bottom lines and struggle to stay relevant. It’s interesting to note that I received my free copy via the Internet, a practice that seems to be catching on since I get a lot of free magazines that way. Obviously it’s a cost-effective way to distribute thousands if not millions of publications without added costs. In fact it’s inexpensive enough that free copies can be sent to boost one’s circulation, thus improving its worth to advertisers.”

In the future, I envision newspapers which will appear three or four days a week, with a robust Sunday edition.  And the mega weeklies are not far beyond, in the style of Die Zeit, of Germany, a product which is part book, part newsmagazine, the ultimate complete Michelin guide to life in the city, with photo galleries a la LIFE or Paris Match magazines. Of course, the mega weekly in print will be a companion piece to a constantly updated online edition.

U.S. News & World Report is a trailblazer. Many newspaper and magazine publishers will be monitoring what happens there. I know I will, too.

FRONT PAGES WE LIKE: Folha de S. Paulo’s front page is a giant navigator to the inside. I remember our excitement creating the style of navigation you see here, where elements can actually “accordion” out of the vertical column, to invade the rest of the page. We see that type of energy’s on today’s front page In this design, our definition of “territory” was altered to include the entire front page, allowing the designers freedom of movement.

SPOTTED WHILE RUNNING TODAY: My iPhone camera came in handy today as I ran through ritzy Country Club Prado avenue, in Miami’s Coral Gables district, and saw the first Obama for President sign rignt in the front yard of one of the beautiful, Spanish-style architecture homes of this tree-lined residential area.

WHERE IS MARIO? In Miami, Florida till early Tuesday.

IN CASE YOU MISSED THE ORIGINAL ENTRY: http://garciamedia.com/blog/articles/the_new_ugly_the_plain_ugly_the_not_so_ugly_how_do_we_define_beauty_in_our/

Here is what Andrew has to say about what constitutes “beauty” in terms of design and the choices we make daily for everything ranging from typography to illustration/photography and, of course, page architecture. He discusses the design of 032c magazine, by Meiré, with its bare bones design, ample use of white space, and what some critics have referred to as “the new ugly.”

“Mario, your posting contains an interesting set of reflections.

“Personally, 032c’s treatment of type reminds me of 80s fanzines and early copies of The Face, where Brody used a Xerox machine to distress, stretch and scale type, before gluing the words into place at various angles. In other words, it’s a computer approximation of a physical playfulness - the kind of thing that slick DTP programs such as InDesign are designed to stamp out. Reed describing it as a “Microsoft Word” design reinforces the point - it looks like it’s been created using software not built for purpose, which makes it surprising and slightly jarring. But Meiré’s careful respect of space, width, readability keep the whole thing reigned in.

“I find Meiré is one of the most adventurous, interesting designers around, with magazines including Brand Eins and Kids’ wear showing his breadth and adventure. Though 032C’s current design isn’t my idea of beauty, it is perfect for its subject matter – creativity, youth, arts, and fashion. It’s these kinds of magazines that help remind me that imagination in print isn’t dead, it’s only much of the mainstream that’s killing itself.

“Also an aside: you mention that our ideas of beauty come in a great part from the Greeks. Yet our stereotypical image of classical beauty – pure white marble statues – is a fallacy. The statues were painted all over, usually in garish colors. It’s only time and weather that’s turned them white. Perhaps the new ugly is the old ugly after all?”

Thanks for sharing these provoking thoughts, Andrew. I find your use of terms like “surprising and adventurous” to describe Meiré’s design as key words that every designer should remember often. And, indeed, I agree with you that imagination is not dead in print, even though it is not always encouraged, especially at a time when panic and fear of what may be are on the menu of almost every print project.

Meiré’s minimalist design concepts are appropriate for the projects in which he has developed them. In that sense, the design is functional. We leave the aesthetic evaluation to the readers. Perhaps instead of “new ugly” we must describe Meire’s work as “new functional” —but that is another discussion.

THE MINIMALIST JENNIFER:  The new Jennifer Hudson CD is out, but before the first song even gets reviewed, it is the photo of the Oscar-winning actress/singer who rose to fame with her show stopping performance in Dreamgirls, that is getting all the attention. Yes, it is a marvelously svelte Jennifer striking a pose: did her Sex in the City movie costars inspire la Jennifer ?  Did she hire her own personal trainer and follow the pineapple and water diet? Or was a Photoshop-obsessed art director behind her amazing weight loss? Another example of the quick and easy digital diet? Regardless, the diva’s music is what counts, and that is likely to be as potent as what her many fans are used to.

WHERE IS MARIO? Flying Frankfurt to Miami today.