For Broccoli magazine, weed smoking is normal, creative and sensorial
Weed smoking today is still largely characterised by the Dazed and Confused, airheaded stoner stereotype. Yet with legalisation, users of the plant — many for medicinal ends — warrant more than one strain of representation. Through art, nature, fashion and music, Broccoli magazine is refreshing the image of cannabis culture. Created by and for women who love cannabis, it is a fun, laid-back title filled with clean design and well-researched articles — the print embodiment of a cool, modern lady, whose only sign of marijuana usage is the thin, chrome pen twirling between her fingers.
New age cannabis products do feature a lot in the magazine, but many of them are made by independent, minority and women-owned businesses. In this second issue’s opening letter, editor-in-chief Anja Charbonneau rallies for her readers to be conscious of supporting women, non-binary people and people of colour in leadership positions in the industry: “The legal cannabis industry is materialising before our eyes, offering the rare opportunity to build a business on true principles of equality and equity.”
In Broccoli, she demonstrates this by showing a quieter, more contemplative side to smoking weed — a marked counterpoint to the sensationalised coverage we’re used to seeing about blunt-toking no-gooders. From sequencing the plant’s DNA, to the world’s first cat dispensary, and a humorous piece about ‘stoner etiquette’ — who gets the first hit? — it uses spiralling, distorted typography, psychedelic imagery, and mesmerising still life photography to create a sensorially-gratifying reading experience. Watch our video review above, and find out more in our recent conversation with Anja.
