Alter Magazine

Collaboration with Yvonne Vega.
(2020) Student project.
Editorial design, conceptualization, & packaging design.

——————

Alter Magazine was an idea born from the necessity we saw in people of breaking free and getting in touch with all the many facets that exist within themselves. We admire the ability drag queens have to get in touch with these very different coexisting realities, and become one with their alter ego, which is why they became our main theme and inspiration.

Alter Magazine is a celebration of the many facets and colors of humanity: a space of no boundaries and no fear of diving into oneself. A heavy mix of art, fashion, photography, and makeup, Alter’s purpose is to set free the alter ego in all of us and blur the social constructs that limit our human expression. A tribute to the drag in us.

We were assigned to create a packaging idea for the magazine’s first edition. Inspired by drag slang (to serve realness), we decided on a hot-pink pizza box that matches this edition’s color and delivers the magazine in an unexpected way.

Content
The magazine consists of an index, interviews, reportage, section titles, infographics, essays, articles, photography editorials (with photographs by Brenda Cantu), columns, recommendation list, and ads.

Process
The development of the magazine started with defining the concept, name, the target market, advertisement, distribution, periodicity, and content. We later searched for similar publications or competitors and established a format. As a team, Yvonne and I would have weekly virtual meetings where we would bounce back ideas about our weekly task and show each other’s work, discussing what we liked and putting our ideas together.

Challenges
The biggest challenge was creating this project during the coronavirus pandemic, mainly because we had to meet virtually with our assessor, and because Yvonne and I could not meet in person to discuss and work together. Another challenge were the time constraints we faced.

Credits
Assessor: Erika Muzquiz
Photography Editorials: Brenda Cantu
Supporting Photography: Brenda Cantu, Cottonbro, Anna Shvets, Anna Kolchina
Michelle Obama Illustration: Daniela Rodriguez