The idea is to die young as late as possible. — Ashley Montagu — Friday August 14th — —

“What art does — maybe what it does most completely — is tell us, make us feel that what we think we know, we don’t. There are whole worlds around us that we’ve never glimpsed.” Greil Marcus — Friday August 14th — —

I love listening. It is one of the only spaces where you can be still and moved at the same time. — Nayyirah Waheed — Friday August 14th — —

No Substance

Although we feel that slowly our saturation point has been reached when it comes to new independent magazines, every once in a while an interesting new name still arrives. The London-based No Substance – an indie magazine with a focus on fashion, photography, and culture – which was founded this year by the young London College of Fashion graduate Becca Deakins is one of those names. The 180-page debut edition recycles the same idea over and over, imploring readers to delve deep into the lives lived outside the ordinary. It features the likes of Rankin, Toilet Paper Magazine, Eva Stenram, Donald Gjoka, Marco Pietracupa, Maurizio Bo, Rita Lino, Scandebergs, Masha Mel and Becca herself. With a strong focus on fashion, photography and culture No Substance is directed at an audience which is able to find style within substance, despite its moniker. We really like this first issue which stands out in the ever-growing field of new magazines and look forward where Deakins will take her promising project.

In an interview with i-D Becca shares her vision on the aesthetic of No Substance:

I’m really drawn to the subtly obscure; I find it so relatable. I find culture a lot more inspiring than fashion. I don’t think fashion images should inspire other fashion images. I wanted there to be a cultural perspective on every editorial so I included a lot of documentary photography, even within fashion editorials I added everyday documentation.

Despite the ironic name of the magazine, No Substance has taken this relevant topical issue of ‘all style and no substance’ and turned it into something immersive, energetic and powerful with its own cohesive visual language. The magazine is a self-proclaimed lo-fi, high-fashion magazine, which we feel are the perfect ingredients to continue creating an own signature and have an impact on the fashion world in the coming years.

To me, I feel like print is more premium because of the physical engagement. I think we see so many digital images every day without even acknowledging their worth, we scroll through Tumblr and Instagram and don’t appreciate them or engage with them in a way that they deserve. I personally don’t spend the time considering digital images in the same way as print.

For more information and to order the first issue online see here.