Fishbowl 5: Washington Life‘s Kris Apodaca

Washington Life‘s November issue is all about the “creatives.” So, what better month to introduce their new art director, Kris Apodaca? FishbowlDC was able to pull her way from Photoshop for a few minutes to talk design, visual changes to Washington Life and the artistic side of editorial.

What’s your background? I moved to DC last year from Denver, looking for a different opportunity in print editorial design. My experience is mainly with home design and lifestyle magazines. I was ready to expand my portfolio and the Washington Life opportunity presented itself at the right time.

From an artistic standpoint, how does editorial content look the best? Content should be easy to navigate and digest. Don’t make the reader work too hard to get the information, but don’t insult them by over-simplifying. And of course it should always be beautiful.

How is design of a society mag different from home/garden? The home design magazines where I’ve worked are about quiet elegance – creating an indulgent mood, something to aspire to. My Washington Life experience so far calls for a more vibrant sophistication. The writing reflects the rich history behind and current state of Washington D.C. society, the bright and beautiful galas and parties, the shopping, fashion and homes… All of this combines to create very engaging content. It’s exciting to jump into each issue as part of such a focused editorial team.

What changes should we expect to see under your artistic guidance? Still clean and stylish but with a little more color, a little more energy. Although Washington Life is considered a regional publication, we are competing against national magazines, and distributed nationally as well, so the design has to be on par with national newsstand titles. That’s what our readers can expect to see moving forward.

As an art director, what are your favorite magazines and why? There are so many. I’m such a magazine junkie. Right now I love Wired. It grabs me by the shoulders, gives me a good shake and leaves me with useful stuff in my head. And I will always love Australian Vogue Living – decadent and never stuffy.

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