A groundbreaking biannual publication that merges the sometimes-chaotic approach to style and content found online with the careful consideration for production and the written word that has always characterised the very best print journals, Modern Matter is unlike any other magazine on the market. Named in honour of its focus on the now, as well as on the facets of art, style, design and culture that most matter to the team behind the magazine, it brings the personal into a sphere that’s typically commercial.
Modern Matter, Issue 22 – Does Size Matter?
Described by the Serpentine’s Hans Ulrich Obrist as “the best magazine in London” and by Magma’s Marc Valli as “porn for a magazine editor”, Modern Matter is unique in its approach to blending the best of long-form culture writing with a fine-art sensibility and a high-fashion aesthetic. It is released biannually, and distributed internationally.
In this issue:
Scale isn’t just a matter of measurement; it’s a matter of intention. In the world of art and design, size whispers, shouts, commands, or recedes. It’s a choice that shapes perception and provokes response. This edition unfolds across three formats — Small (170 × 100mm), Medium (200 × 270mm), and Large (305 × 540mm) — a physical reminder that the space something occupies is never without consequence.
But is scale simply a practical decision, or does it dictate meaning? A small work might demand intimacy, while a large one insists on authority. The mid-size? Perhaps it negotiates, walking the line between presence and restraint. Art, like language, uses scale to speak — sometimes in gestures so slight they’re nearly inaudible, sometimes in forms so vast they fill our field of vision.