From the Nominator

The Winter 2019 issue presented a design challenge because it had to include two features of particular importance to University of Alberta alumni: the annual Alumni Awards and a feature about the Tuck Shop cinnamon bun. When New Trail published a letter to the editor about the Tuck Shop buns a couple of years ago, we had more than 150 responses from alumni sharing memories and asking for the recipe. This was both a great thing—two of the magazine’s goals are to contribute to a feeling of community among alumni and ignite nostalgia—but also a little terrifying, because it meant we had to get the feature treatment right. We also wanted the story to appeal to younger alumni who do not know the history. These considerations informed our approach to the cover, the mix of photos and illustrations in the feature, and even the decision to include the recipe. Alumni Awards featured 32 alumni. The challenge was to make the package cohesive and uncluttered and the pacing interesting. This issue also introduced a new element: The Hub. What had been a plain list of events now offered readers useful information through an entertaining mix of content.

From the Judges

This is a boldly designed, consumer-style magazine that would stand out as well on a newsstand as it would on a reader’s doormat. The design is clear and stylistically strong. There is clear delineation between features and prelims and consistent use of page furniture. The ‘32‘ feature is stand-out; a lot of information contained in a long article that holds together well. Rare are examples of covers featuring photographs of food that look appetizing, but the cover achieves that. And the biro-drawn illustration, reminiscent of doodles during lectures, is cleverly done. The result is a design inspired by serious newsstand names—Time Out, The New Yorker—that could hold its own among these popular titles.