My Favorite Cover

Finalist

SURFER
“The Great Wave,” October 2017

Donny Stevens, Designer
John Severson, Illustrator

"This will go down as a classic SURFER Magazine cover, as it incorporates the artwork of the magazine’s late founder, John Severson. Severson started SURFER Magazine in 1960, and the early issues were filled with his own photography, writing and illustrations. Severson, a self-taught publisher, learning how to make a magazine on the fly, which is why his art felt like a perfect fit for SURFER’s DIY issue. The painting, titled 'The Great  Wave,' described by Severson 'It’s a statement of our big-wave charge and reckless drive into unpredictability, slabs and unknowns; improvising in extremely dangerous and fast changing situations.'"

As I scroll through all of the magazine covers, this one captured my eye in an instant. Maybe it was the color or just the idea of the wave that made me want to read into it. As I read the explanation, I also loved why he decided to make the wave the front cover of the magazine. It was used to demonstrate "reckless drives to unpredictability, slabs and unknowns," as Severson mentions. I think that this painting is also correctly depicting what you are going to see in the magazine, considering it is a surfer magazine. It probably has a lot of artsy photos and art incorporated into the articles. The wave is the subject of the photo, and the bright colors help to drag the eye to the cover.