A little over fifteen years ago, as we put together our second annual Inspiration Issue, we asked celebrated graphic designer Chip Kidd, then the associate art director at Knopf, to imagine a cover befitting that issue’s theme. The result set in motion not only that specific cover, replete with Spirograph drawings and images of whirling dervishes he had found on a trip to Istanbul, but also a cherished tradition of asking graphic designers and artists to cover our first issue of every year with something new, surprising, uniquely inspired.
In some instances, as with this issue’s graphic depiction of varied locales across the vast expanse of our literary landscape by Matt Stevens, as well as last year’s sculpture of the firefly lighthouse by Helen Friel, we approached an artist with an idea of our own, typically informed by the package of articles we had planned. In other years we purposely left it open to the imaginations of the cover designers, which is how we got Polly Becker’s light bulb assemblage (2012), Roman Muradov’s poetic parade (2015), and Ric Carrasquillo’s moody cityscape (2017).
Eugene Smith’s incredible debut poet portraits have appeared on two Inspiration Issues (2018 and 2020), while the 2019 and 2021 covers featured photographs—of Hanif Abdurraqib and of Mark Wunderlich’s writing desk, respectively.
More recent covers evoke feelings that were all too familiar at the time of their creation: Kanghee Kim’s “Rest Area” (2022) appeared a little less than two years into the pandemic, and Tim O’Brien’s cracked-open storm cloud with light in the distance in “Silver Lining” (2024) elicited an overwhelming sadness along with a note of optimism during a time of war and violence.
No matter the medium, style, or composition, the results have been meaningful in ways we never could have planned—wholly unexpected, like inspiration itself.
The 2010 cover, the first in our series of Inspiration Issue designs, by Chip Kidd. The 2011 cover with astronomy-inspired illustration by Jim Tierney. Polly Becker’s assemblage for the 2012 cover, including doll parts, an old photograph, and a light bulb, plus an early draft of Becker’s assemblage. (Credit: pollybecker.com) Clockwise from left: Wayne Brezinka’s 2013 mixed-media cover; artwork detail; a preliminary sketch based on a scientific definition of inspiration: “to breathe in, to inhale.” (Credit: waynebrezinka.com) The 2014 cover with collage by Stuart Bradford. The 2015 cover depicting “an endless procession of styles and information layering upon each other,” and Roman Muradov’s preliminary sketch. (Credit: romanmuradov.com) The 2016 cover featuring collage by Michael Waraksa. The 2017 cover, with illustration by Ric Carrasquillo, with an earlier version of the illustration showing room for cover lines. (Credit: behance.net/squillostudio) Hanif Abdurraqib, the only author photographed for the Inspiration Issue, in 2019. Debut poet illustrations by Eugene Smith cover the 2020 issue. The 2021 cover featuring a photograph of poet Mark Wunderlich’s writing desk. Artwork by Kanghee Kim on the cover of the 2022 issue.
“Golden Slumber” by Weitong Mai covers the 2023 issue. “Silver Lining” by Tim O’Brien in 2024. Clockwise from left: The 2025 cover featuring a paper sculpture by Helen Friel; her original sculpture, along with working firefly light, before it was photographed for the issue. (Credit: helenfriel.com)
