Feeling low on inspiration, trying doing something different in your life. If you like fiction, read non-fiction. Do you love the outdoors, try going to see some urban sprawl. Vacation affords us the ability to break out of our regular environment and explore different areas for inspiration. Being home for the last few days gave me the ability to do just that. Instead of spending time creating on the drawing board I created master pieces in the kitchen. Dark Chocolate liquor coated Rugelach, Turmeric Halloumi Salad and Pretzel Coated Schnitzel with Colman's Mustard Powder.
Dark Chocolate Liquor: Lavie Liquor Hallomi Cheese: Gad Chesse
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OH Gosh! Its Monday morning after a grueling Sunday of closing the entire magazine. ZZZZZZZZZ (that's me sleeping). I think I got home after 11 o'clock last night from work, and this Monday morning I can actually feel the neurons flashing in my cerebral cortex -- and it doesn't look like the Fourth of July. Instead, my brain feels like sludge, and the only thing that is percolating is my coffee. Yikes, now I have to speak to the Family First editor and think in metaphors. Wait, I apologize. If you are feeling as lost as I am at this point you deserve some background before I continue my rambling. Please let me introduce myself... We are a Jewish magazine. A religious Jewish magazine. A religious Jewish magazine with a Rabbinical Board. A Jewish magazine with a Rabbinical board that nixes many of our graphic ideas based on Torah-true values and a sensitivity to our readership even after we work very hard to come up with what we think is very creative based on an article being published (yes, I am aware of the longevity of that sentence; that's how long the process is). Based on that reality, when it comes to thinking up ideas for Family First, a women's magazine without any images of women, we have to really put on our thinking caps. Thankfully I never really put on my thinking cap in grade school so mine is quite fresh and "out of the box". So this week's focus is an article about religious couples who met through a drug Rehab program called Retorno (cool name). A refreshing article about people really struggling in our Orthodox culture. Located in Beit Shemesh (yes, we are the mecca of everything controversial), this organization helps people with addictions, gets them back on their feet and sometimes people actually meet and get married after treatment there. My challenge was figuring out how to portray this article in a sensitive manner that meets the needs of the Family First editor, Bassi Gruen, and gets Rabbinical Board approval. Luckily I know some people that are quite creative. I have neither met nor spoken to these people, and they don't even know of my existence. However, these are book designers that are on the top of their field. This week I remembered a book cover done by John Gall (see below image) with a simple image illustrating relationships without using humans. I took this idea on the nod from the editor and passed this on to the graphic designer in charge of this article, Brachi Rosnes. She understood the concept right away and made some options and then we made the final (see below image). We worked together, the Editor seemed happy, and it passed the Rabbinical Board. I was very happy with the end product, I put my thinking cap away and enjoyed my now cold coffee. |
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December 2015
AuthorMenachem Weinreb is the Creative Director of Mishpacha Magazine and Professor of Visual Arts and Design at Naaleh College. He loves to help people experience things visually. Categories
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