Thank you so much
Luxx!!
The
Credits for W magazine 2006:
W Jan: Mary-Kate Olsen by David Sims
W Feb: Reese Witherspoon in Louis Vuitton by Michael Thompson
W Mar: Kate Moss by Craig McDean
W Apr: Jessica Simpson by Michael Thompson
W May: Lindsay Lohan & Meryl Streep by Michael Thompson
W June: Madonna by Steven Klein
W July: Kate Bosworth by Michael Thompson
W Aug: Natalia Vodianova by Mert & Marcus
W Sept: Christina Ricci by Mert & Marcus
W Oct: Janet Jackson by Michael Thompson
W Nov: Freja by Mario Sorrenti
W Dec: Cameron Diaz by Mert & Marcus
Behind the Scene:
Photographer tally:
David Sims - 1
Michael Thompson - 5 (he shoots a whole lot more for
Allure, I am sure)
Craig McDean - 1
Steven Klein - 1 (Madonna's good deed of the year, along with adoption)
Mario Sorrentti - 1
Mert & Marcus - 3
Model count: 3 out of 12 (Kate Moss, Natalia Vodianova, Freja), in keeping with W tradition.
Looking at the tally really makes me wonder what happened to Craig McDean. He got off to a stellar year, shooting both March covers for US Vogue and W, then pretty much disappeared from American publications. Did his September project for Vogue Paris consume him completely??
Best and Worst:
I like the design of a lot of the W covers, but feel lukewarm about the execution. I like the side-swept bangs and the teal on Mary Kate, the delicious and nonchalant pairing of a plastic dress with wet hair and a red pout (sounds vulgar, but is actually miles more interesting than the runway look), a backless ball gown on Kate Moss, the shadow on Kate Bosworth's face, and a glimpse into Cameron Diaz's body of a bronzed goddess. However, I also don't like the boredom Mary Kate's eyes project, the fact that they used the 30-year-old Reese Witherspoon as the modern Lolita, how the purple cast on Kate Moss's makeup cheapened her look, and seeing Cameron Diaz's or anyone's armpit. So I guess, through the process of elimination, Madonna wins. Coincidentally, it is also the weakest issue of the year in terms of content, showing some 40+ pages of Madonna and nothing else. Sure Steven Klein is a master, but Madonna today is no longer interesting enough to deserve an exclusive issue. Last year's Bragelina issue, however, I cherished.
The worst cover would be Lindsay Lohan and Meryl Streep, because the former turns everything she touches into trash. What a self-conscious poser she is. Just terrible. I also thought Natalia Vodianova looked like a moron in the Balenciaga riding hat. A shame that of all the splendidly moody pictures Mert & Marcus shot for the issue, this one ended on the cover. Janet Jackson, ugh. Christina Ricci's cover should elicit much hate mail from PETA, and deservedly so. I like the idea of bare collarbones wrapped in some luxurious material, but the color of that fur is revolting. I am in the minority here, but I do not like that Art issue cover at all. A full-body shot with so much water color is visually ajar.
Jessica Simpson I can tolerate. Visually, it is uncontroversial and rather forgettable. Funny that the exact same hairstyle ended up in Versace's autumn-winter campaign.
