For Noon, joy lies in the quality and uniqueness of the final product
Since its conception Noon “has always set out to consider what it means to be alive today”, Jasmine Raznahan, founder and editor, tells It’s Nice That. The SS18 issue is based around joy; they asked collaborators who “they felt aligned conceptually with the concept” to respond to the theme via a series of different lenses: “purity, repose, intimacy, love, shame and details”. These abstract sub-headings are representative of the thoughtful style we typically associate with Noon; a magazine that succeeds in bringing together its contributors in a harmonious, critical whole. “Each of the lenses became a story”, Jasmine explains, “and each of the stories became one of sixteen parts that all explored a common theme”. The sections are threaded together beautifully, gathered in unison by text and image.
Joy for Noon is all about the freedom of self-publishing; they can “print what we want, how we want, when we want, with whom we want”, Jasmine jubilates. As the magazine is print-based only, its entire creative energy is channelled into the final product. “Things often get lost on the internet, or inversely you stumble upon them by chance”, Jasmine mentioned to us in a previous interview, “I want to produce something that people could rest on, rather than flick through at a relentless speed before moving on to something else”. Due to this decision, much focus is put on production — how the magazine feels and appears in the reader’s hands. “It’s such a moment of joy when you’re looking at a publication, and you discover hidden details throughout, a special insert, stickers, different quality papers, inks etc.”, Jasmine explains — and it’s true; certainly, the greatest joy for It’s Nice That is printed pages — the gift of holding a beautiful and high-quality object in your hand.
In the SS18 issue “Mel Bles shot a fashion story with Brian Molley, and we created a smaller booklet that sat in the middle of this section full of the collages Mel had made”, the editor-in-chief explains, “we ran a neon ink through there to give it an extra pop”. The final product is a gorgeous explosion of colour, an immediate moment of joy for the reader; paralleled with the playful, jubilant image story-telling. “We also ran a silver Pantone through the duotone images of a Mulberry story”, Jasmine explains, “which created these shimmery, reflective moments throughout that story, which feels really special”. When a magazine goes just that little bit extra to create a unique and beautiful final product, it certainly makes us happy, as we’re sure it would make any other reader.