Photo: David Hartley/REX USA. Who do you want to see on the cover of a magazine? A celebrity? A supermodel? Or, someone who looks just like you? According to British Vogue editor-in-chief Alexandra Shulman, nobody wants to see so-called real people on the cover of fashion magazines. Shulman made this revelation during a conversation with Lily Allen on Radio 2, where the two discussed the fashion industry and the on-going debate surrounding the use of thin models in editorial shoots.
"People always say 'why do you have thin models? That's not what real people look like.' But, nobody really wants to see a real person looking like a real person on the cover of Vogue,” Shulman argued. “I think Vogue is a magazine that's about fantasy to some extent and dreams, and an escape from real life.”
She also conceded the public’s favourite brand of cover star is "quite conventional, probably smiling, in a pretty dress; somebody looking very 'lovely.' The most perfect girl next door." When did our tastes become so pedestrian? As the print industry experiences its most challenging period to date, it must be tricky for editors to make out-of-the-box decisions when circulation figures are more closely scrutinized than ever before.
Yes, fantasy and inspiration definitely influence our magazine-buying decisions, but do we really want to only see images of women who are the “perfect girl next door?” Isn’t it time to be challenged by the covers we see on the newsstands? To the comment section with your thoughts. (The Telegraph)