1839 Mag

1839 was a Pittsburgh-based magazine that takes a nuanced look at the intersection of race, politics, the arts, community and culture in the Steel City and beyond. A pilot project of the Kelly Strayhorn Theater and supported in part by The Heinz Endowments, the magazine was inspired by the life, work, and legacy of Pittsburgh's native son August Wilson. The name itself was an eponymous salute to 1839 Wylie Avenue, the fictitious address of Aunt Ester, Wilson's most significant character. Wilson himself chose the number as a reference to the year of the Amistad slave rebellion. Specifically, then, 1839 was a Black thing. A vehicle for Pittsburgh's Black voices, which are often times drowned out by "the most livable city" rhetoric, to testify and shine and opine.

As Creative Director I designed the identity, the website (a custom Wordpress theme extended by Advanced Custom Fields), and took up the mantle of photo editor and head photographer. Additionally, I collaborated with Co-Editors Deesha Philyaw and Damon Young on the sitemap and shaping the editorial direction.

My goal for the look of 1839 was to create something print design reminiscent--90's VIBE magazine in particular. I was a huge fan of the large format, bold branding, and striking portraiture. The New Yorker and Esquire were artistic inspirations, too. These were/are all destinations where content really shines, but within a visually captivating frame. Geometric shapes and primary colors factory heavily in 1839's styling, and the idea of what it would look like if someone printed out a page from a magazine and took a pen and highlighter to it to circle pullquotes and highlight passages played a huge part, as well.

Our inaugural staff editorial read:

“1839’s mere existence is disruptive. An act of revolution. A contribution to the collective memory and history of Black Pittsburgh and beyond. A declaration of our voices and our art as necessary, as transformative, as evolving, as uncompromising, as here.”

It's my hope that the work I did with 1839 has added another level of style and passion to the landscape of what it means to be Black in The 'Burgh.