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A black and white collage of photographs featuring people in rocker attire. Each image includes a caption, such as “Russell Avelry likes Bill Haley” and “Helen likes rock’n’roll, especially Status Quo”.

Publication: What a treat! A flick through issue 1 of i-D magazine from 1980

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Date
4 December 2013

This is exciting. If, like me, you’ve always fantasised about what the inside of issue 1 of i-D magazine looks like, and your wallet does not allow you to buy one off eBay then THIS IS FOR YOU. Since the new i-D site was unveiled a few weeks back by proud new owners Vice it has been providing the art and design and fashion community with the publication’s extensive archive of colourful, wild fashion content from the biggest names in the industry.

What’s so enticing about the pages of issue 1 is that it’s just the raw ingredients of what i-D magazine was destined to become. It’s a stripped-back zine of cool, young kids doing the most outrageous things first on the streets of London where, arguably, everything fashion is born. There’s interviews with teddy boys and girls, articles about The Cramps and a lot of street fashion photographs. We can all take a lot of inspiration from the debut of this legendary London rag, and that’s if you carry enough conviction in what you’re photocopying, you can pretty much do anything.

A black and white photograph of a person’s profile is overlaid with a large, bold pink “i.D.” logo. Text blocks flank the image, including a manifesto on style and a list of contents under the heading “WHATS IN”.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A black and white zine spread featuring two people standing against a plain wall. Between them, a pink and black graphic reads “WILD!” and “STRAIGHT UP”. On the left, a person wears a dark cardigan and oversized pleated trousers. On the right, a person wears a studded jacket and a tall, spiky hairstyle.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A black and white zine spread featuring two portraits of people. On the left, a person in a long black coat stands against a wall, accompanied by a short biography. On the right, a person in a leather jacket and white trousers poses against a draped backdrop.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A magazine spread featuring a black and white photograph of two people wearing graphic T-shirts. To the left, a bold logo reads “i-D -FUSION” above a block of text about fashion.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A black and white collage of two photographs framed by a bright pink border. Two people pose in graphic T-shirts and loose trousers, with a caption at the bottom reading “T SHIRTS by STATE ARTS 80 Berwick St LONDON W1”.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A collage featuring a person lying down and playing a saxophone. Above them are technical line drawings of geometric shapes and a black and white photograph of a person posing. Small blocks of text are scattered across the page, including a headline that reads “High-Tec on a low budget”.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A graphic layout for i-D magazine featuring a high-contrast black and white portrait of a person’s profile. A large, bright pink “i-D” logo is laid over the image, with a block of text to the right and a short manifesto to the left.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

The cover of the first issue of i-D magazine in bright pink and black. Bold text reads “i-D” across the centre, with “FASHION MAGAZINE Nº1 50p” along the top.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

A grid of eight black and white photographs showing various people in mid-century youth subculture attire. Each photo includes a caption identifying the person and their musical tastes, such as “Russell Avery likes Bill Haley” and “Helen Perkins likes Elvis”.
Above

i-D Magazine: Issue 1

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About the Author

Liv Siddall

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Liv joined It’s Nice That as an intern in 2011 and worked across online, print and events, and was latterly Features Editor before leaving in May 2015.

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