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Chess Life, the official magazine of the United States Chess Federation (USCF), has been the primary chronicle of American chess since its launch in 1946, when it began as a bi-weekly newspaper replacing earlier annual reports. The publication evolved steadily, converting to a slick-covered magazine format in 1961 and briefly merging with Chess Review as Chess Life & Review from 1969 to 1980, before returning to its original title. Today, Chess Life stands as a premier monthly magazine, offering tournament reports, game analysis, and news for USCF members, and serving as an indispensable historical record of nearly 80 years of U.S. chess. From 1987 through 2003, Jami Anson served as Senior Art Director and Director of Publications, acting as lead Creative Director for 16 years and designing more than 192 issues of Chess Life. Jami oversaw every aspect of visual production, including typesetting, full-page layout, digital design, cover concepts, and photography, working closely with the Chess Life team—most notably Joanne Fatherly, the guiding force behind typesetting. In the late 1980s, all production was done manually through cutting, pasting, and assembling physical paste boards for press, often requiring late nights until 2 or 3 a.m. to meet deadlines.

As digital tools emerged in the 1990s, Jami and the team rapidly mastered Adobe and QuarkXPress, transitioning the magazine into the modern digital design era. Over her tenure, Jami worked through more than eight Chess Life editors and nine executive directors, and alongside Joanne Fatherly became one of the longest-standing and most influential members of this historic publication’s staff.

© Creative Production (Senior Art Director and Director of Publications) and Photography by Jami L. Anson