The recent round of editor musical chairs made the magazine junkies excited, but maybe a little jumpy and twitchy. No one likes anyone messing with one of her favorites. Such a relief, though not a surprise, to find Newell Turner's first issue of House Beautiful such a delight.
Not a surprise as Turner has been Style Director at House Beautiful for quite a while; the magazine has felt his influence already. "I worked so closely with Stephen Drucker over the last four years here that I feel like it's already my House Beautiful. But, great magazines are alive and dynamic - meaning there's always some evolution in progress. Especially today, no one wants exactly the same thing over and over again," says Turner.
I wondered if he had a moment of giddy pleasure being able to feature David Kaihoi's distinctly beautiful apartment in his debut issue. "I did! This may sound a little crazy, but that purple color spoke to me." No, no that doesn't sound crazy at all. That sounds normal. That's normal, right?
Turner was quick to give credit to his team, "Of course, I have one of the best design directors, Scot Schy , in publishing. I loved what David did with the salvaged wallpaper in the bedroom. And, when Scot showed me the layouts for the story including a full page detail of the wallpaper...how much more evocative does it get? Every time I look at that spread in the magazine I want to reach out and touch the wallpaper. I hope it does the same thing to our readers!"
If you haven't had a chance to pick up the July/August issue you should make it a point. That sunny beach house, top, can put a spring in any one's step. And Kaihoi's apartment? Tear Sheet Hall of Fame.
All images House Beautiful, July/August 2010. Photography, second from top, Victoria Pearson; design, Krista Ewart; remain photos by Ngoc Minh Ngo.
Labels: Designers
