The New Fashion Elite
March 6th, 2007 Posted by V
V Magazine is pretentious. At 10.5 x14 inches, V proudly stands the tallest publication on the newsstand. V has the best photographers, the best models, and a foil stamped cover. V is the face of the New Fashion Elite.
The New Fashion Elite is a little group I’ve made up. Anna Wintour is not a member. Condé Nast is not an affiliate. The New Fashion Elite couldn’t care less what Vogue has to say about this season. They are educated, sophisticated and worldly. They write about bands and artists you haven’t heard of, but will. They read—and I don’t mean The Devil Wears Prada, and V is their visual journal.
V is so far from a typical fashion magazine in every sense of the category. There are no ads for diet products snuck into the back, no write-ups on 10,001 ways to not age. Instead there are articles on punk legend Darby Crash, a photoessay on the real New Yorkers movin’ and shakin’ the art world, and profiles of gallerists.
If you want to look at pictures of the fashion world financed by Dr. Nip n’ Tuck pick up a Vogue, W, or Glamour. If you want to learn what makes the industry tic from the top tastemakers in the game of sophistication, pick up V.
Tagged: art, fashion, haute couture, tastemakers, V
3 Comments Add your own
1. ralph | April 11th, 2007 at 4:44 am
Er… you had me till you started espousing the Virtues of V. It WAS starting out to be a real fashion magazine till it resorted to non-models on the cover. Also, stylists do not make good editors. The writing is puerile at best - you really DO need someone to reign in all the fierceness with a red pen. though the magazine exudes luxury and decadence by it’s size and texture, it is undermined by the sloppy, dated typography squashed in nearly illegibly on black backgrounds. The magazine, as always, has marvelous photography and the most brilliant styling - but I’m afraid it still falls short. The best fashion magazines still come from abroad.
2. V | April 11th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
Ralph:
Are you American?
I strongly feel that fashion mags with non-models on the cover are a VERY American concept. It is hard these days to find an American fashion magazine that DOES have a model on the cover. I personally agree with you and prefer to see models on the covers of fashion magazines. But sadly the American ideal seems to be that “anyone can be a model” or “anyone can be famous” (hence shows like American Idol and Top Model).
Additionally, Americans crave celebrity like no other culture. And face it, Fergie on the cover of Glamour sells better than some Czech girl whose name no one can pronounce let alone recognize.
On a similar note, celebrities these days, at least in America, are less of a talent, and more of a “Brand”. On that thought line, it doesn’t surprise me that celebrities are marketing themselves as musicians, models and the like.
So, in essence I agree with you regarding the best fashion mags coming from abroad. But, for an American fashion mag, I still feel strongly that V is heads above the competition.
PS: Care to share the titles of some of your favorite fashion mags from abroad?
3. ralph | April 11th, 2007 at 8:06 pm
For Men and Woman: from Britain I-D (my favorite all time), Dazed and Confused, from Austrailia Doing Bird, Spain NEQ
For Women’s fashion, French, Italian and British Vogue, From France Citizen K, From Britain Lula, Spain Vanidad
For Men: Fantastic Man, Men’s Hommes Vogue International and from Denmark He, Another Man, (though featuring Celebs on the cover is superb)
Um… I have to save more stuff for my OWN blog - so this is just off the top of my head, things I buy now and then.
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