The Coolest Magazine Covers of March 2014

Image via Complex Original

Joaquin Phoenix graces M's March cover, but the award-nominated Her actor's appearance isn't the only reason why we like it so much. The neon shapes and repetition of images turns an otherwise ordinary cover into a work of art.

Illustrator: Maurizio Di Iorio

Two inanimate objects come to life on the vibrant cover of Printed Pages' spring issue. It shows an orange sprouting large green leaves to caress an egg. The photorealistic yet playful digital illustration is a departure from the magazine's previous cartoon-like covers.

Andy Warhol is timeless and loved everywhere. This much is clear in Casa BRUTUS' March cover. It displays a woman clad in a consumer culture-inspired ensemble, looking wide-eyed and surprised. Behind her are Warhol's iconic Campbell's soup cans. It's a playful celebration of the king of pop art.

Illustrator: Daniel Frost

The brand new COLD NORTH magazine recently launched its debut issue, and its front cover alone is sure leave an impression in viewers' minds. It shows a stoic man with his back turned to us. Instead, he faces the bright yellow moon and starry night. The contrasting blue and yellow colors (instant Van Gogh vibes) and the René Magritte-reminiscent figure calls to mind two of the greatest artists in history.

Creative director: Adonis Durado
Associate art director: Waleed Rabin

The March 27 issue of Thursday looks like a mosaic of the human brain at first. If you look closely, however, you'll see that it's actually made up of the many blocks found in a crossword puzzle. The image works nicely with the issue's main topic on memory blackout.

If you think about it, the cover makes a lot of sense. Though our brain is capable of storing so much information, we always seem to blank and momentarily blackout on all that we've learned when we need that information the most, like during crossword puzzles.

Photographer: Julian Niznik
Art director/designer: Gregor Vykruta

The model on Twee Paper's March issue looks simply picture perfect. Perhaps the art directors wanted to emphasize this fact. Instead of just featuring the woman on the magazine's front cover, they also laid down a pink grid, as if to show the symmetry and perfect proportions of the model's face.

Design director: Gail Bichler
Director of photography: Kathy Ryan
Designers: Raul Aguila, Ben Grandgenett, and Jason Sfetko
Design associate: Audrey Rodriguez

This cover of The New York Times Magazine shows how frustrating the dread SATs can be for some students. It's a fitting cover since the issue's main topic deals with why College Board has recently decided to overhaul the nerve-racking exams.

Illustrator: Ana Juna

This New Yorker cover is not only a harbinger of warmer (therefore better) days to come, but it also marks a special occasion for illustrator Ana Juan. The featured butterfly represents both spring and a change (or metamorphosis) for 52-year-old Juan, who recently got married last month. We like this cover for its pastel colors, perfect for the issue which came out during the first week of spring, and for the touching story behind it.

Photographer/designer: Ai Weiwei

The obscured figure on the front of Zeit Magazin's March 20 issue ought to look familiar. It depicts Ai Weiwei posing before a wall of white. Though his face is covered in bronze, viewers can still make out who the subject is because of Ai Weiwei's scruffy gray beard and wardrobe. It makes total sense for the German magazine to feature the Chinese dissident artist on this cover since he just opened his largest solo exhibition ever in Berlin. He even designed and photographed part of the issue.

Art director: Matt Curtis
Director of photography: Jon Jones
Designers: Jessica Rose, Mat Gill, Sophie Dutton

Is it just us, or does this cover of The Sunday Times Magazine bring to mind all sorts of René Magritte vibes? Whether it's the green apple or the intense gaze of Jonathan Ive, the striking photo succeeds in capturing viewer attention.

Illustrator: Luis Parejo
Art director: Rodrigo Sánchez

Dedicated to Wes Anderson's latest film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, the weekly Spanish publication features the titular hotel on its March 21-27 cover. The repetition of windows and the clean, white design makes it appealing to readers, if they aren't already enticed by the issue's subject.

Creative director: Billy Sorrentino

For the last issue of Wired, Questlove took a break from making music to write a piece on how to find new music to fall in love with, so it seemed appropriate to have the artist on the cover of the issue as well. The cover shows Questlove smiling euphorically with a pair of headphones around his neck, perfectly capturing his longtime infatuation with music.

The kid on the cover of Babesta Beat's Spring/Summer issue is too cool for school. It features a mischievous youth clad in an edgy wardrobe before a wall of graffiti. In her hand is a large apple. If you haven't figured it out already, the "Pranksy & the Playground Mob" cover is a riff off Banksy's Flower Bomber.

Creative director: Adonis Durado
Associate art director: Waleed Rabin

The March 13 issue of Thursday magazine focuses on some of the unconventional and controversial methods parents are using to raise their kids. To illustrate the topic, the magazine turned to one of America's most dysfunctional yet beloved families. After all, who else is a better representation of controversial parenting than Homer Simpson?

Last month's issue of Juxtapoz was a real blast from the past. It took a look at how 1960s psychedelic experimentation gave birth to groundbreaking art and magazines like Juxtapoz, now 20 years old. The vibrant, retro-themed cover served as a fitting preview. Not only is the typeface on the cover's subject groovy, but the color schemes and specked texture calls to mind Andy Warhol's famous diptychs and portraits.