Body of Work 1:1 magazine bursts into life

Larger than life Australian magazine, Body of Work 1:1, entered into Guinness Book of Records.

Bigger is better when it comes to magazines, says Bob Armstrong of Armstrong Miller + McLaren. The photographer, who was responsible for producing the 1x2 metre magazine wanted a way of grabbing people's attention and he found the answer was size.

"Body of Work 1:1 was designed for corporations and wealthy people who want to make a statement and this is a different way of doing that," he said.

Only one copy of Body of Work 1:1 exists, though McLaren is happy to print more for those wanting to buy it. The magazine took two weeks to produce, which included being printed on a HP press and then bound.

Armstrong believes that Body of Work 1:1 is the largest magazine in the world and plans on entering it into the Guinness Book of Records. He notes that it is interactive and engaging.

"When you put a painting up it's just a painting on the wall, but Body of Work 1:1 is a cover and 20 pages," he said. "This isn't a coffee table book; it's a coffee table."

At a time when magazine circulation is plummeting and many people are looking to the internet, Armstrong reckons that the trick is to made print do what online media cannot.

"All the magazines we design can't go on the web," he said. "People have tried to make online versions of Body of Work, but that's not what the magazine is made for."

Body of Work 1:1 is currently showing at The Menzies Hotel, 14 Carrington Street Sydney and will make its way across Australia.