Inspiring Graphic Design Magazine – Round Up

Everyone needs inspiration, it doesn’t matter in what department are they involved with in their everyday life. Though, for creatives like graphic designers, interior designers, web designers, and the like, inspiration become the nourishment for their creative brain. With the technology in publications and internet, we are now provided by many variations of magazine choices.

Why magazine? Because it’s simply handy. A magazine usually delivered with tons of informations. As for graphic design magazine, we could find anything we need on it. Range from interviews with the featured designers, information about contest or design events, reviews on design utilities (software, books, or other), tutorials on how to create certain effect or graphic, showcase of inspirational designs, and much more. However, out of hundreds of graphic design magazine out there, sometimes you have to be very selective to choose which one to read. Therefore, I have provided you with the round up for the most inspirational graphic design magazine, the published ones to the free ones you can download from the net. If you found another inspiring graphic design magazine of which you think should be on the list as well, feel free to drop it on the comment section. Enjoy!

Print & Published Magazines

1. p r i n t Magazine

Print is a bimonthly magazine about visual culture and design. Founded in 1940 by William Edwin Rudge, Print is dedicated to showcasing the extraordinary in design on and off the page.

2. HOW Design

HOW magazine’s goal is to help designers, whether they work for a design firm, for an in-house design department or for themselves, run successful, creative, profitable studios.HOW strives to serve the business, technological and creative needs of graphic-design professionals. The magazine provides a practical mix of essential business information, up-to-date technological tips, the creative whys and hows behind noteworthy projects, and profiles of professionals who are influencing design.

3. I.D. Magazine

I.D Magazine is a leading critical magazine covering the art, business, and culture of design.

4. Communication Art

Communication Arts is an amazing art and design magazine that consists of eight issues and includes the Design, Advertising, Illustration, Photography and Interactive annuals.

5. Computer Arts

Computer Arts, the world’s best-selling magazine for digital artists and designers, boasts a strong line-up of tutorials every issue, covering everything from manipulating photographs with Photoshop to creating amazing vector illustrations with Illustrator. You’ll also find tonnes of tips and tricks for web design, typography, 3D, animation, motion graphics and multimedia. It’s the one-stop shop for professional advice.

6. IdN

IdN magazine is an international publication for creative people on a mission to amplify and unify the design community. It has been an active organiser of many design-related events. It is devoted to bringing designers from around the globe together to communicate with, learn from and inspire one another. It has truly become what the initials of its title proclaim it to be: an international designers’ network.

7. CMYK Magazine

CMYK Magazine is where aspiring creatives showcase their talents to an industry driven by inspiration and new ways of creative problem solving. At the same time, CMYK Magazine is where creative directors, agency principals and art buyers recruit students and recent graduates at today’s top art-design schools: art directors, copywriters, designers, photographers and illustrators.

8. Before&After

Before & After magazine has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understandable, useful and even fun for everyone.

The magazine is available as a PDF or printed as other magazines.

9. Digital Arts

Digital Arts addresses the needs of those within the exploding digital media market by providing relevant and forward thinking content, and by consistently running more exclusive reviews and features than any other magazine or Web site in the market. Digital Arts consistenly delivers high-quality content, providing its professional readership with the latest news and reviews first.

10. .net

.net is the world’s best-selling magazine for web designers and developers, featuring tutorials from leading agencies, interviews with the web’s biggest names, and agenda-setting features on the hottest issues affecting the internet today. If you’re serious about web design, then .net is the magazine for you!

11. Layers

Every page of Layers magazine is brimming with powerhouse tutorials for Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, GoLive, Acrobat, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Dreamweaver and Flash – all the secret Adobe techniques that design professionals need to quickly and easily produce dazzling results.

12. Photoshop Creative

Photoshop® Creative is the perfect magazine for learning more about Adobe’s outstanding application. Each issue is packed with inspirational tutorials covering the whole scope of the software, from creative projects, to practical guides to using tools and techniques. Readers also benefit from a collectable CD-ROM each issue. Whatever you use Photoshop for, Photoshop creative will help you become a better digital artist.

13. Step Inside Design

14. Juxtapoz

Billed as an art and culture magazine, at first glance it might seem like art and counter-culture. A closer look shows some of the most intriguing arts coverage available.

15. Beautiful/Decay

Beginning as a hand-photocopied, black and white ‘zine, some ten years ago, Beautiful/Decay has always prided itself on putting artists—and quality content. In keeping with the spirit of our independent, DIY philosophy, we have decided to break the mold of traditional magazines, cut out the (sub)standard print industry and change up the way we do business. Beautiful/Decay has more of the content you love, with none of the filler.

16. Creative Review

The aim of Creative Review is to inspire, inform and stimulate debate among our readers in graphic design, advertising, digital media, illustration, photography and all other fields of visual communication worldwide. We do this in a number of ways.

17. GD USA

Graphic Design USA is the leading design business magazine and is a great resource for freelance designers and studio owners.

18. Eye Magazine

Eye Magazine is “the quarterly print magazine for everyone involved in graphic design and visual culture.”

19. Desktop Magazine

Desktop is a respected (but still playful!) industry leader in all above-mentioned communication avenues, covering news, events, profiles, inspirations, technical processes, challenges, products and services and in a vast array of creative fields including print, photography, animation, fashion, typography, packaging, digital media, web design, post-production, illustration, gaming design and more.