LibertyRose
memoirs of a...
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I thought it would be neat if we gather the thumbnails of magazine covers and discuss the best designs (and worst too, if you wish) of 2006 for a particular magazine. For example, US Vogue, UK Vogue, Paris Vogue, Vogue Italia, German Vogue, Vogue China, W, and Flair could all have their respective best and worst covers. Personally I am not too keen on InStyle/Cosmo/Bazaar covers because they are just different versions of headshots... And I'd try to keep talks of models vs. actresses to a minimum because there is already a separate thread for it. This is for cover designs only.
So I'll start off with US Vogue and Vogue China.
Sorry for the quality and color distortion of the covers... The images were grabbed from eBay.
Thumbnails:
Credits:
US Vogue Jan: Sienna Miller in Chloe by Mario Testino
US Vogue Feb: Drew Barrymore in Hermes by Mario Testino
US Vogue Mar: Natalie Portman in Prada by Craig McDean
US Vogue Apr: Jennifer Aniston in Alexander McQueen by Mario Testino
US Vogue May: Keira Knightley in Gucci by Mario Testino
US Vogue June: Uma Thurman in swimsuit by Mario Testino
US Vogue July: Kate Hudson in Balenciaga by Mario Testino
US Vogue Aug: Linda Evangelista in Bottega Veneta by Steven Klein
US Vogue Sept: Kirsten Dunst by Annie Leibovitz
-US Vogue Oct: Sandra Bullock by Steven Meisel
US Vogue Nov: Cate Blanchett in Chanel couture by Steven Klein
US Vogue Dec: Nicole Kidman in Versace by Mario Testino
Behind the Scenes:
Mario Testino seems to have replaced old favorite Steven Meisel as Vogue's resident celebrity profiler, shooting seven out of twelve covers, though he was snubbed for the all-important March and September issues, which went to Craig McDean and Annie Leibovitz, respectively. Testino may be known for his glorious lighting, which turns his subjects into sun goddesses, but I feel current airbrushing technology is too advanced for its own good and wipes out the dimensions and shadings in Testino's work. His best piece for US Vogue, I believe, is not a cover shoot but the Gisele editorial with Eric Bana.
In terms of selecting a designer piece for the cover, I generally like US Vogue's political ways, though I think their timing leaves a lot to be desired. While US Vogue divides its twelve slots for big advertisers (Prada and Gucci won this year, while Ralph Lauren and Dior sat out) , commercially viable collections (Chloe), critics' darlings (Balenciaga), and one up-and-comer (Alexander McQueen), I often think that they choose the wrong winners and losers. I think Gucci has been atrocious for a long while now, so it is unfair that it got chosen over both Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs, who turned up excellent interpretations of the trend of the season (volume). Chloe's moment of brilliance was in 2005, and YSL is much more deserving of the spotlight this year. Balenciaga is hard to argue against, since its brand of equestrian chic won editors' hearts across the board, but I thank US Vogue for leaving out the riding hat at the least. Alexander McQueen, though an undeniable talent, won his first US Vogue cover for the absolute worst spring collection he has done, and on top of that had to dress Jennifer Aniston, who has no bearing on his stylish philosophy. However, I do give kudos to US Vogue for honoring the tradition that at least one couture piece gets the cover each year. Next time, bring back resort too!
Best and Worst:
I don't think it was a particularly good year for US Vogue. When it came time to decide what the best cover was, my mind drew a blank. The August cover with Linda Evangelista was an unanimous tFS favorite, but other than using a model, that cover has little merits. The hair is so weirdly done! I like the idea of Sienna Miller in Chloe and Cate Blanchett in Chanel couture (a pairing so perfect it makes complete sense) and, to some extent, Nicole Kidman in Versace (an idea so ironic it almost makes sense), but am not estatic about any of the execution. I guess if you put a gun to my head, I'd say Kirsten Dunst's September cover is the best, because all that pink definitely left a lasting impression.
I didn't have a problem with coming up with a worst cover. I hated Jennifer Aniston in April because it was a boring actress in a gaudy dress; Sandra Bullock in October because her pose is about as stiff as her acting (though the gowns she wore inside are lovely); Keira Knightley in May because it exhibited little of the youthful irreverence she showed in that pokka-dotted editorial; and Drew Barrymore in February because her image makeover is so coerced. She is only on covers because she makes a conscious effort to buy designer stuff (and possibly their friendships too). I love Jean Paul Gaultier for Hermes but that grecian dress is wasted on Drew.
picture source: eBay
So I'll start off with US Vogue and Vogue China.
Sorry for the quality and color distortion of the covers... The images were grabbed from eBay.
Thumbnails:
Credits:
US Vogue Jan: Sienna Miller in Chloe by Mario Testino
US Vogue Feb: Drew Barrymore in Hermes by Mario Testino
US Vogue Mar: Natalie Portman in Prada by Craig McDean
US Vogue Apr: Jennifer Aniston in Alexander McQueen by Mario Testino
US Vogue May: Keira Knightley in Gucci by Mario Testino
US Vogue June: Uma Thurman in swimsuit by Mario Testino
US Vogue July: Kate Hudson in Balenciaga by Mario Testino
US Vogue Aug: Linda Evangelista in Bottega Veneta by Steven Klein
US Vogue Sept: Kirsten Dunst by Annie Leibovitz
-US Vogue Oct: Sandra Bullock by Steven Meisel
US Vogue Nov: Cate Blanchett in Chanel couture by Steven Klein
US Vogue Dec: Nicole Kidman in Versace by Mario Testino
Behind the Scenes:
Mario Testino seems to have replaced old favorite Steven Meisel as Vogue's resident celebrity profiler, shooting seven out of twelve covers, though he was snubbed for the all-important March and September issues, which went to Craig McDean and Annie Leibovitz, respectively. Testino may be known for his glorious lighting, which turns his subjects into sun goddesses, but I feel current airbrushing technology is too advanced for its own good and wipes out the dimensions and shadings in Testino's work. His best piece for US Vogue, I believe, is not a cover shoot but the Gisele editorial with Eric Bana.
In terms of selecting a designer piece for the cover, I generally like US Vogue's political ways, though I think their timing leaves a lot to be desired. While US Vogue divides its twelve slots for big advertisers (Prada and Gucci won this year, while Ralph Lauren and Dior sat out) , commercially viable collections (Chloe), critics' darlings (Balenciaga), and one up-and-comer (Alexander McQueen), I often think that they choose the wrong winners and losers. I think Gucci has been atrocious for a long while now, so it is unfair that it got chosen over both Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs, who turned up excellent interpretations of the trend of the season (volume). Chloe's moment of brilliance was in 2005, and YSL is much more deserving of the spotlight this year. Balenciaga is hard to argue against, since its brand of equestrian chic won editors' hearts across the board, but I thank US Vogue for leaving out the riding hat at the least. Alexander McQueen, though an undeniable talent, won his first US Vogue cover for the absolute worst spring collection he has done, and on top of that had to dress Jennifer Aniston, who has no bearing on his stylish philosophy. However, I do give kudos to US Vogue for honoring the tradition that at least one couture piece gets the cover each year. Next time, bring back resort too!
Best and Worst:
I don't think it was a particularly good year for US Vogue. When it came time to decide what the best cover was, my mind drew a blank. The August cover with Linda Evangelista was an unanimous tFS favorite, but other than using a model, that cover has little merits. The hair is so weirdly done! I like the idea of Sienna Miller in Chloe and Cate Blanchett in Chanel couture (a pairing so perfect it makes complete sense) and, to some extent, Nicole Kidman in Versace (an idea so ironic it almost makes sense), but am not estatic about any of the execution. I guess if you put a gun to my head, I'd say Kirsten Dunst's September cover is the best, because all that pink definitely left a lasting impression.
I didn't have a problem with coming up with a worst cover. I hated Jennifer Aniston in April because it was a boring actress in a gaudy dress; Sandra Bullock in October because her pose is about as stiff as her acting (though the gowns she wore inside are lovely); Keira Knightley in May because it exhibited little of the youthful irreverence she showed in that pokka-dotted editorial; and Drew Barrymore in February because her image makeover is so coerced. She is only on covers because she makes a conscious effort to buy designer stuff (and possibly their friendships too). I love Jean Paul Gaultier for Hermes but that grecian dress is wasted on Drew.
picture source: eBay
