Archives of American Art Journal – Polygraph

First published in 1960, the Archives of American Art Journal is the longest-running scholarly journal devoted to the history of art in the United States. The biannual, peer-reviewed publication features original research and artwork based on the vast holdings of the Smithsonian Archives of American Art. Continuing the strong design tradition of the Journal, we sought to reinvigorate the brand by clearly delineating departments and developing a typographic way-finding system. A primary challenge was how to feature art prominently on the cover without the brand being overly intrusive. Our solution was a short-sheet cover system that easily and consistently contains the brand elements across issues without interrupting the artwork.