What makes a good magazine cover design? A good cover attracts attention to the magazine and gives the reader an idea of the contents. Sometimes it sets the tone for the entire issue, defining a graphic style for the pages inside. Individual photographers and illustrators, working with the art director or editor, create the artwork that is so important to the overall look and appeal of individual magazines.

Like posters of the period, the covers used simple, powerful images to convey clear messages. A number of the cover artists also produced posters and other artwork. For the United We Stand campaign, artists and designers worked to create visually exciting covers that combined the patriotic symbolism of the flag with the distinctive style and subject of each magazine. To learn more, look behind the designs of these July 1942 covers.