Ai Weiwei

With space specifically set aside for art, a relatively low page count, and stories that were generally turned in on time, I was afforded some extra time to think about my layouts for this week's issue — a rare luxury!

I'm especially happy with the Ai Weiwei spread (pages 28-29) and the beginning of the Music section (pages 20-21).

For the piece on Ai Weiwei's @Large exhibition on Alcatraz, we were able to send photographer Nassime Addi to The Rock to preview and photograph the exhibition, which made for fantastic interior art, as well as an online slideshow.

Flip through the issue below (check out those layouts!) or read the individual articles online here.

Pedaling and feasting

SF Bay Guardian editor Steven T. Jones spent much of his vacation this year biking and camping along the California coast, and wrote about it for our current Feast Issue.

Despite my crippling fear of biking with car traffic, he made the trip sound irresistible. I would love to try his route — or at least a portion of it — someday when I'm a little braver. Read his article here.

To accompany the piece, I created an infographic map that shows 12 of his most memorable meals along the coast. Check it out below.

Awkward sexy magic

For the SF Bay Guardian's annual Sex Issue, arts intern Daniel Bromfield wrote a feature/playlist on awkward songs to give oral to, which was hilarious and amazing. (Read it online here.)

I sent an early copy of the text to illustrator Gracy Henry Pincer, and we came up with this awkward sexy magic:

Layout for the Music section opener in the Bay Guardian's 2014 Sex Issue; illustration by Grace Henry Pincer

Stamps for Pride

I put together these fantasy stamps of queer icons for the SF Bay Guardian's queer issue.

See the online slideshow version here.

The Identity Project

I love the Identity Project. It's a simple concept: photographs of LGBTQ community members accompanied by a strip of text explaining how they define themselves. But its beautiful, honest black and white portraits pack a powerful punch.

I initially discovered the project on Instagram while Insta-stalking artist Lisa Congdon, who was photographed for the project. (She's the extraordinarily happy, tattooed wife in the layout below, bottom right.) I immediately fell in love with the project, and it's been a happy addition to my photo feed ever since.

When publisher Marke B. put out a call for suggestions for the SF Bay Guardian's Hot Pink List — our annual list of queers we adore — queer femme Sarah Deragon, the photographer behind the Identity Project, was at the top of my list.

But as fate would have it, Sarah missed her plane flight home, missing her Hot Pink List portrait session on the Friday before we went to press. We found a wonderful replacement, but we were all disappointed about not being able to promote the Identity Project in this year's Queer Issue. So when we were hit with a bunch of last-minute ads on Monday and decided to increase the issue's page count, I knew exactly how I wanted to fill that space: with the Identity Project.

With Sarah's permission, we repurposed her already-done Hot Pink List interview, and I collaged her Identity Project portraits (and their labels) together in a layout I had been looking for an excuse to try. And I love how it turned out!

All photos by Sarah Deragon for the Identity Project

See the online version here.