Latest / PCMA Convene Podcast / Convene Talk: Inside Convene’s Covers: How Illustrations Bring Ideas to Life
Transcript
- Convene Talk, ep. 87/November 14, 2025 *Note: the transcript is AI generated, excuse typos and inaccuracies Magdalina Atanassova: This is the Convene Podcast. Welcome to another Convene Talk. Michelle, do you want to introduce today's topic? Michelle Russell: Sure. Thanks, Maggie. So one of the calling cards of Convene, or a hallmark of Convene, is that every cover is illustrated by a different artist. So I thought we would go behind the scenes and talk about that process, which is one of the most creative parts of putting the magazine together, and also just how art plays a really important role in the magazine overall. So just to go through the process, we have a very talented design firm, Point Five Design, and they have access to all of the, I'm gonna say Rolodex, that's. That is definitely putting me in the boomer category. It's an old fashioned term, but they have access to all of these illustrators. And what we do is we talk about what the cover story is going to be about. We try to do that as early as possible in the cycle. And we don't art direct. We don't say, what I think would be great is if we had a grapefruit on this cover. We just say, here is what the idea is and do you need more to go on or do you think this is enough to think about what kind of illustrator would be best, would be a good fit for this? And usually they come up with two or three illustrators. We pick one that we think is the best one. They go there, they go to that person first. If the illustrator is busy, we keep going down. Most of the time we get the illustrator that's our top pick. And they do a sketch and, and we look at the sketch and usually 0.5 will give them some more art direction if the sketch isn't really fitting or it's just something doesn't feel exactly right. And by the time we get to see the sketch, we can say we'd rather tweak it this way or do that or this. And then we go from there to a final. And then we come up with a cover line. Sometimes they ask us to come up with a cover line first so that, that helps the artist figure out what direction to go in. But it's always interesting for me to see the process and just to see how artists think differently than I would think, because I'm somebody who's very much, you know, grounded in reality, whereas they're just thinking they're taking a concept and making it into something that people will grasp without. For example, we had a, a cover that was about the circular economy and the illustrator came up with objects that were not specific to recycling. And the question was, should we have some objects that are specific to recycling on there? And I thought it was better to make it abstract because let people look at it. It's supposed to be a way for people to look at the magazine and say, that seemed. I'm curious, what is that about? Rather than spell it out for them on the cover and have them think, oh, I already. I know about single pla. You know, single use plastic. I know about food sorting. I know about composting to make it very abstract. Sometimes it invites people to turn the page and read the story. So it's always interesting to see what illustrators come up with. My personal favorite is usually the most recent one because I'm excited to see the new one. And the most recent one for us is the salary survey. And it's just a lone figure standing in a city with a T shirt that says, am I getting paid what I'm worth? And to me, it's just a very concrete symbol of what the salary survey is about, is the question everybody has, I think. And so I think they can put themselves in that person's shoes. So I'm interested in hearing what other people on the team think about our covers. Maggie. Magdalina Atanassova: Okay, I had to jump at that because I love this part of the process. And for me, since I've been in the industry, it's going to be now 20 years convenient has been really special just because of those covers. And I love art in general. I am covered in art. I'd like to think of all my tattoos. So it just evokes a special feeling. And I also wanted to highlight. It's not only the covers, but we have illustrated advertorials that are very special and we have people that we work with on a regular basis. And just the process from how we select those people for, you know, the artists for the cover is very unique. But also, you know, working again and again with the same artists and seeing how they are really, it's not really progressing, but developing their also style and their feel for different destinations and different locations or whatever the advertiser is asking them to do, it's very. It's very interesting. And looking at the. The small details that they think of, it's really mind blowing. And I follow most of them or I think I try to follow all of them really on Instagram. And they often share also behind the scenes on how they're creating their pieces and how they're thinking of those small details and they're showing the process. I would Invite everyone that's interested in that to just follow us because I reshare through the Convene Instagram a lot of their work and they're tagging us as well. So it's a collaborative process. But when it comes to favorite covers, I believe I have a list. So the first one that was very special to me just because it was my very first issue that I worked on was the August of 2023, when we worked on AI as a cover story. Sergio Membrillas was the artist. So this will always and forever be a special cover for me. And then two other that are recent, so I would put them in the category of I've worked for Convene, have firsthand insight on how those came about. The first one was the Olympic Games. So December 2023, Jen's cover story with Serge Bloch. Bloch, I would say he was French, so I hope I pronounce his name correctly. He has a very unique style, so I really love to see how that came about. And another favorite is the Sacred Cows. It was just such a fun cover. And the artist, Dale Crosby Close. He has such a fun style. I was mind blown when I opened his Instagram and his portfolio. He's just very kooky. He still kept it very professional for our cover because I've seen him go into really wild directions and. And going backwards. My three old times. July 22nd, Martin Seti was the artist. Something that I think I see in the background of Michelle's office is June 2018, the burnout. It's from Red Known Studios. So they've done two covers also June 2017 and June 2018. So it's a nice juxtaposition of that character that they created in November 2017, just because it's Futurama. And I loved everything Futurama related. So I love that cover very, very much. And I'll link to all of those because I think they're just so interesting to look at and to see all the artists and the variety and how they interpret something that they're not very, you know, that's not their field. We're just giving them something and they know it has to be events related, but not really. And they have to just interpret it in a very interesting way. So I love that. Barbara, what do you think? Barbara Palmer: You know, I'm just thinking about just how much fun it is because writers, like, we solve problems in different ways. And so, like, I've done a little work with the illustrated series. Jen does a lot of that back and forth. But when I have worked with the map makers, just the little details, just, you know, when you're really working closely, you're just like, how did they come up with that? I mean, I'm just. It's just a. It's a visual genius sometimes that you're just like. It's just exciting to see them solve problems. I think just this idea of having an illustrated cover all the time, as opposed to. Most of the magazines in our sector use photographs. And what. I think that no matter. Like, they're so varied. But what you always know when you look at it is that what's inside are ideas. The COVID is always an idea that is then interpreted through a lot of different lenses. And I think that that's just a really good signal of what's inside that. You know, there's a lot of ideas in there. I was excited to hear you say that July 22nd was one of your favorites, because that was the storytelling with data, which I just loved that. And when I was looking through the covers, I realized that I liked a little suspense or a little mystery. Like, when you're like that, storytelling with data. I mean, it's clearly like this. You know, you can tell what it is, but there's, like, all these pixels, and it's just like. It just makes you stop and go, what's going on here? Another cover I really liked was September 2023, which was. It addressed that there was a lot of, you know, as we came back from the pandemic, just, you know, there was a lot of kind of more foment that was happening around meetings, like people demonstrating and more security. And the cover just really illustrated that in such. It just. It was just, you know, it's like you look at it and it looks like an ordinary scene of a speaker, and then you look and the audience is in shadows and you can see, oh, there's, you know, something's going on there. So I love that. Real Standout was the one that was the maker economy that was used. It was like. And Michelle could tell us more about this because she worked on that one. And it was, you know, it was, like, created by textile artists. It was not just a visual representation of a textile artist. So I just. It's always been one of my favorite things about our magazine. And I just think that our 0.5 studio is just. They're just kind of, in my view, peerless in their attention to detail and their willingness to keep going. You know, it's like sometimes that comes together quickly, and sometimes, I mean, Some of them have just been agonizing at the end, like, oh, this isn't. Like, this isn't quite right. And, you know, I've gone up to the very. So anyway, it's just. It's been always. One of my favorite parts of the process is to. Is to be able to get a. Get a front row seat on that artistic production. Jen, what's on your mind? Jennifer N. Dienst: So I wanted to share my favorite cover, which is from. Made June of 2024. And that was the maker economy. I feel like we have a lot of cool covers. We have a lot of really great, impressive artists. But there was something about this that I think communicated the story so well in a way that was almost like, tactile, because if you look at this cover and I encourage anyone listening to go to our. To convene slash digital or hyphen digital.org and look at the digital edition. So you can really get a sense of this. But, I mean, they did such a good job conveying kind of the tactile qualities of. Of makers and what makers do with this illustration. And I don't. I actually don't know how they created it. I'd love to know a little bit more, but I either escapes me or I'm just not. I just can't remember. But. And also just the way they illustrated the story itself, I think was one of the best examples of the creativity that goes into making our cover and our cover stories. So I just wanted to highlight that because I think that was a really special issue, and I think something. It was also a story that we all contributed to. I'm really proud of that. The story I contributed. And I think everyone did such a good job highlighting different examples of how this movement kind of is intertwined in our industry. So I just wanted to highlight that and make sure everyone is aware of it. Magdalina Atanassova: I feel that it's not only that cover, but also the cover on your Olympic Games cover story that you did December 23rd was again, not digital art, but something physical intertwined with something that was created in a different format. Jennifer N. Dienst: That was tricky because we got into. I mean, there's a lot of symbolism with the Games that, you know, I think everyone's aware of as the largest sporting event in the world. That happens. But it's tricky because you have copyright issues and trademark issues. So, you know, there's certain things that we could do and couldn't do. And if you read the story, we, you know, interviewed the IOC or the story. And so I, you know, we did have to Kind of double check and make sure ahead of time, like, what. What's kind of fair game, what's kind of not in terms of these symbols that your people are familiar with, like the. The torch. Of course, the big thing we had to stay away from was the rings. Like, we really couldn't illustrate or replicate the. The rings in any way, but the torch was something that we could play with. And the torch, I mean, they always do something special for the torch for every. For every iteration of the game. So that's not like, new. But they did do something kind of unique for this one. It was made from recycled materials, which I think was different. So, yeah, that was. That was a challenging one, but it was. It turned out really, really well, especially because we had a little breakout box in the story that talked about the torch and how it was created and how it was made, which kind of alludes to the cover So, yeah, that was a fun one. But, yeah, it's tricky. Magdalina Atanassova: And also, the artist was French, which was a nice time. Barbara Palmer: Yeah. Magdalina Atanassova: Yep. Jennifer N. Dienst: Yep. Because that was the Paris Games. Yep. That was cool. Magdalina Atanassova: Michelle. Michelle Russell: Speaking of tricky, I just feel like I should talk about this a little bit. So when I first came here many years ago, this is like a tradition that has long been for convene having the illustrated cover. There's some issue, and I can't remember what it was that the editor in chief at the time wanted the illustrator to do, like people in a foxhole and like, bracing themselves. And the art director at the time, we were using a different studio. Mitch Szostak said, I don't think that's a really good message for an association to share with its community, is you're in a foxhole. And that always stuck with me because I feel like there are some times where we really talk about difficult subjects, or during the pandemic, when things looked very bleak for our industry, or we get results from research or a study that we do, and it doesn't paint a really pretty happy picture. We still have somewhat of an obligation, I think, to focus on the more hopeful aspect rather than to present an illustration that just looks really scary. And I also remember that, and this was purely by coincidence, that the September 2001 cover was a ticking time bomb. And that was right before 9, 11. And I just feel like, as part of our responsibility is to focus if it's a difficult time, to focus on the industry's resilience, the industry's ability to be flexible to. I mean, I hate the word pivot, but we've used that also. And to not just not try to Pollyanna a topic, but to focus on something that is more hopeful and inspiring than scary and pessimistic. Magdalina Atanassova: I feel that those covers actually are adding a lot of depth to the story in a different way. So oftentimes the same artist illustrates something for the inside of the. Of the magazine right next to when we introduce the cover story. And that gives it just a little bit extra. And I noticed that I leaned towards those covers with a lot of things happening because they're giving me just this kind of a moment to breathe and look at it and think and especially reading the title. So now I have two things that are just introducing me to what's to come. But I also have the space to think about it myself. And I feel that that's special. It's not something that can be given with a. I mean, probably with a picture you can, but it's different just because you have this interpretation. It's not so straightforward as a picture of a city, a picture of something, but it's. There's more to it. Michelle Russell: Nuances, right? Magdalina Atanassova: Yes, exactly. Yeah. Barbara Palmer: Well, just speaking of nuance, oftentimes the second. The illustration that accompanies the cover story is more nuanced. Like, it's like the cover and then that secondary illustration tell a story, like with. And then. And I love when the illustrator then also does smaller illustrations or cutouts of the secondary illustration that then go with the. That go along with the. With the illustration. And I'm sorry, I started. I suddenly remembered a cover I loved, which is when we did a story about homelessness and how it affected downtowns and the experience of being at meetings. And the illustrator used a cardboard. There was a cardboard sign, like the signs that you might see an unhoused person holding that held the cover lines on the cover And I thought that was a really creative way of just. In a. Just in a glance, you. You already know where you're going. Jennifer N. Dienst: I. Barbara Palmer: What I also wanted to talk about is Carmen Segovia. And I had to look up her last name because she's been doing this for so long. We just call her Carmen, but she illustrates there's a meeting for that, which is the final page in every issue. And there is always so much wit. And I mean, she's a wonderful illustrator, but she's very witty. And just seeing how she takes meetings and their nuances and translates that into, like, often a visual pun or a way of, like, just telling that story in a. And really a pretty small illustration is just you know, it's like she. She's been do. I don't know how many years she's been doing it, but she, it's like always takes it up another notch and keeps surprising you. Michelle Russell: She's wonderful. And I also feel like the art direction is just wonderful. So years ago we did a story on failure and how important it is to accept failure and you learn from it and get comfortable with it. So Alyssa had the idea at point five to do a cross stitch sampler because a sampler that says home sweet home. Obviously you feel comfortable. This is something you'd have in your home. And it was failure, sweet failure. And it was just cross stitched and that was the cover And it just showed me that there's so many different ways to get people into a particular mood about something. And so sometimes it is like the maker's cover. It is something that is created by hand, and other times it is created by hand in terms of a drawing or an illustration. But it's probably my favorite part of the job just to see how these ideas, to Barbara's point, they're all ideas that we write about come to life in the cover And the fun part. Magdalina Atanassova: Is also when we see those covers win awards because sometimes the artists run with them for different artists awards. And that's pretty, pretty nice feeling that we were a little part of their overall story and what they're putting out into the world. And they're proud of their work. Many of them work for very big publications like the New York Times, the New Yorker and so forth. We see them being utilized by other major publications. And the fact that now also the illustrated Victoria's, they're so popular, we needed to introduce a new one with again, a fabulous person who illustrated Michelle. Correct me who? The New Yorker. The recent, the most recent New Yorker cover. Victoria. Michelle Russell: Yeah. Magdalina Atanassova: Yeah. So pretty cool. Michelle Russell: Yeah, we're in good company. We're in. We're in the big leagues with our illustrators. And that's also a feather in our cap. Magdalina Atanassova: Well, absolutely. Michelle Russell: Yeah. Barbara Palmer: You know, and I think that. I don't think any of us came would come into a conversation not valuing illustrators. But one thing I love about 0.5 is that they are really, really kind of valiant about knowing the value of illustrators. And, you know, it's so easy to reproduce their work, take their work, use it without attribution. I know with AI, that's, you know, just an increase, you know, just encroachment on creative intellectual property rights in art, all kinds of directions and that is one area where Alyssa and Nathan are just, you know, definitely very, very high standards on everything they do, which is really great to work with. Magdalina Atanassova: Even. We had a cover story on AI and it was not produced by AI, so. Right. I thought that was pretty cool. Michelle Russell: Yeah. Barbara Palmer: Yes. And you know, they're not all like, they. When you look through them, they're not all like your favorites. Then I'm sure that that's true for, you know, so it's. It's just like when, like any kind of creative endeavor, like, you aim and sometimes it just like, boom. Michelle Russell: And sometimes it's good enough and other times it's extraordinary. Barbara Palmer: Yeah. And I know that Maggie will put links in, but it is fun to scroll through the covers and it's easy to do on our website. And we would love to hear from you too. Like, I hear when I talk to people how much they like our covers. So. Magdalina Atanassova: Yeah, I'm not sure that all of our listeners actually understand how much work goes into our cover. So I hope that was a little interesting insight into how that part of the magazine comes about. Because it's a process requires, as you have heard, quite a bit of work from all of us, from our design studio, from the artists. So it's a long process, but it's worth it and we'll stick by it. We're not going into AI and any of those because it's really something that we. It's something very convenient, I'd say. Michelle Russell: And I think it's sort of how magazines have come full circle, where I have to say, PCMA puts the investment, because it is an investment to pay artists to create something custom for us. But it's also the understanding that it makes sense to, if you're going to use the resources to print something, to put something in print, it's gotta be top notch. And so I feel like just this whole thing has come full circle, that our issues have invested in the best kind of creativity and something that's meant to be really enjoyed. Barbara Palmer: Well, and I always think of it like from a sustainability standpoint too. Like, if you're gonna take paper and print on paper, what you put on the paper really needs to matter. And I think that is, you know, like, when you look at the covers, I'm excited, kind of. Like, I know that I've got probably like every kind of bias you could have about magazines because I love them. But I'm really excited about how many magazines I see out. You know, like, where I see magazines are like the, the racks have more magazines I see more stores with magazines, with healthy magazines. So I feel like definitely with this kind of movement toward analog, people wanting to, like, not, you know, spend all the time on the screen, that it just feels like there's definitely a resurgence in magazines. I know that I have more subscriptions to magazines than I've had in quite a few years because I, you know, I like to. I like to read with print. Magdalina Atanassova: I don't. Michelle Russell: And I think you'd be remiss not to say that talking about the investment we make at PCMA, we pay more to print on recycled paper. Recycled paper costs more money. We use only soy ink in the printing of the magazine. And also, once we were taken to task because we had a. A subject line that was like, no more plastic yet. It was poly bagged. The issue was poly bagged. And somebody pointed out the irony of that. However, we work with Lane Press in Vermont, and all of those poly bags are made with compostable cornstarch. So they're not the typical plastic that gets in a. Goes in a landfill and doesn't disintegrate. So even in that, since we are trying to be as sustainable as possible. Magdalina Atanassova: It was a very fun topic, Michelle. So thank you for bringing it up. Barbara Palmer: That was very fun. Magdalina Atanassova: Thank you. Remember to subscribe to the Convene Podcast on your favorite listening platform to stay updated with our latest episodes. For further industry insights from the Convene team, head over to PCMA.org/convene. My name is Maggie. Stay inspired. Keep inspiring. And until next time.