INDEX 2020 and Two who made a difference

On page 282 in this book there is a list of publications that Bernard and Glaser (1929-2020) have designed, redesigned or consulted on and it comes to an impressive ninety-eight. The book's three chapters give a visual insight into how these two designers, over several decades, created remarkable covers and inside pages for a wide range of consumer and trade magazines.

Their work on the weekly New York, from the first issue in 1968, takes about half the book with dozens of covers and spreads, each with text and captions explaining their thoughts on the layout and why they chose a particular illustrator or photographer. Over three issues the magazine revealed the secret history of Watergate and eighteen pages are shown from these issues which only used large illustrations. Bernard and Glaser left the weekly in December 1976 when Rupert Murdoch bought the title. 

Chapter two looks at seven titles that were designed independently by either Bernard or Glaser. Chapter three covers work from 1982 when they formed MBMG, an editorial design and development company, sixteen titles are considered including Washington Post magazine, US News & World Report, U&lc, Time special editions, Fortune. Nicely included in this chapter are three failed titles. The New York Film Review ran for five issues, Globe and Inspired never got as far as a newsstand. The Inspired logo, on page 248, looks almost unreadable.

This is a handsome looking book (a tip of the hat to designers Fausta Kingue and Natalia Olbinski) with hundreds of pictures and printed with a two hundred screen on a semi-matt art paper. A worthwhile purchase by anyone working in publication editorial and graphic designers.