SPELL Magazine

Co-Creative Director & UX DESIGNER

View SPELL Website

SPELL is a student-led, Philadelphia-based art magazine that celebrates emerging local artists. I helped develop its visual identity, design editorial spreads, and build a website that connects artists and readers.

The project addressed the challenge of unifying diverse artistic voices under a cohesive brand while giving each submission space to shine. The result is a flexible style system, an intuitive website, and engaging editorial layouts that foster community, visibility, and creative collaboration.

Context

  • SPELL was founded to amplify student creativity and connect Philadelphia’s arts community. The goal was to create a platform that elevates individual work while maintaining a unified identity.

    We needed a magazine and website that balance cohesion with flexibility, ensuring each artist’s voice is highlighted.

    • Establish a strong, adaptable visual identity across print and digital

    • Build a website for browsing past editions and submitting work

    • Design editorial layouts that showcase artwork and writing

    • Support community engagement through events and workshops

    • Designed and maintain the website

    • Co-led creative direction across web, print, and community initiatives

    • Produced editorial spreads balancing typography, layout, and imagery

    • Curated submissions with artists across platforms

    • Designed promotional materials for community events

Brand Identity

Working with my Co-Creative Director, Drew Malizia, we developed the SPELL brand system to feel bold and accessible while maintaining professionalism. We extended this identity across all touchpoints, including the website, editorial layouts, and social media. Drew led the logo design and oversees our social media presence, while I lead the design and maintenance of the website. Together, we collaborate on new spreads, updated style sheets, and general creative direction to ensure the brand continues to grow cohesively across every platform.

Website Wireframes, Colors, & Typography

I created wireframes for key pages including the homepage, archive, submission form, about page, and events section. The website needed to be intuitive for both readers exploring content and artists submitting work.

To maintain a newspaper-inspired vibe, I chose a neutral base with pops of color. A strong dark tone mimics traditional newspaper print for text and backgrounds, while a vibrant pink-red highlights important elements and adds energy. Blue tones provide balance and cool contrast, and a soft off-white creates a clean feel that's easy on the eyes.

For typography, I focused on balancing readability and impact. Bold fonts for main headings make key content stand out, sleek italics for subheadings add flair while staying clean, and a versatile sans serif for body text ensures a smooth reading experience.

Editorial Colors & Typography

Each edition features its own color palette, refined between issues based on feedback about readability and visual impact. Body text remains consistent across editions for readability, while bold editorial fonts change to reflect each season's mood and theme.

First Edition Colors & Typography

Second Edition Colors & Typography

Design

Website Design

The SPELL website serves as the central hub for the magazine. The site features:

  • Homepage: Highlights the latest edition and featured artists

  • Read: Browse all past editions

  • Submit: Clear submission guidelines with streamlined form

  • About: Team bios, mission statement, and contact information

  • Support Us: Donation link to help bring our pages to print and our email list

The design is mobile-responsive and optimized for discovering content across devices.

Take a look below to see mock-ups of the desktop and mobile versions of the website or take a look through SPELL Mag’s website.

Desktop

Mobile

Editorial Design

For each spread, I balance typography, layout, and imagery to showcase artwork while maintaining visual cohesion throughout the edition. Working alongside co-creative director Drew, we design spreads both independently and collaboratively. The design process involves planning layouts that accommodate various art forms (photography, illustration, poetry, mixed media), collaborating with artists to understand their vision and intent, and iterating based on how pieces work together in sequence.

Each edition features submissions from Philadelphia student artists across all disciplines. We welcome all forms of creative work without thematic restrictions, allowing contributors to share what matters most to them. Our team of interviewers gathers stories from featured artists, adding depth and context to the visual work. Between editions, we've refined spread layouts to improve pacing, balance text and imagery, and enhance overall readability.

Featured below are spreads I have designed for SPELL Magazine. To view the full editions, explore the Winter 2025 Edition or Spring 2025 Edition.

Winter 2025

Spring 2025