here & now

Another man’s style magazine might not exactly be something the world has been waiting for, especially after the flurry of new titles swimming in the shadow of Fantastic Man’s surprising success. But when I saw the list of people involved at Port magazine – Dan Crowe and Matt Willey from the short-lived but outstanding literary journal Zembla (along with former Wink creative director Kuchar Swara) as publishers, author Hanif Kureishi as music editor, actress Samantha Morton as film editor, former Another Magazine fashion director David St. James, etc. etc. – I realised this was different: this was ambitious.

And the launch issue does not disappoint: beautifully designed, cleverly written and carefully edited, it’s a gem of a magazine. Independently financed and published, Port does not attempt something radically new, but rather to revive a tradition of ’60s and ’70s men’s magazines, such as Esquire or even Playboy if you will, combining style and entertainment with high quality essays and reportage. So the idea is to reintroduce an old concept that seems to have gotten lost somewhere along the way, and for that Port relies on nothing but a sense of quality, be it in writing, design or photography.

And quite successfully so: while some of the artists’ portraits might fall a little short, especially the brief essays and columns are all brilliantly written – witty, surprising and continuously thought-provoking. Thematically, Port might range somewhere between Monocle and Fantastic Man, with the large difference being that you actually want to finish reading the articles. It’s a mainstream publication with a clear vision and a refreshingly personal point of view, a magazine that does not aim to please but rather to engage.

Sometimes it’s as simple as that: good and relevant content that is beautifully presented. It’s magazines like Port that make you wonder why so few titles get the balance right. But hush now – our world has just become a little richer.