UK Vogue July 2016 : Renée Zellweger by Patrick Demarchelier

[Creative]

I HATE ageless issues, it's like being older is some separate category of beauty.

Great reflexion! What I actually hate is using a certain age or feature as a pretext to do an issue. It would be like: blond issue, tanned skin issue, blue-eyed issue... Absurd.

Making a deal out the age is what is embarrasing.

 

[dcmaike]

No. Just bad.

 

[bluestar]

Interesting to see her on the cover...but could have been SO much better.

 

[AD011620]

I really want to like it but I can't... It is a surprising cover choice, I just wish it lived up to that sentiment...

I agree, they have to stop these ''age'' issues... I don't understand we refer to 10, 20, 30, 40 as age anyway, so why do we suddenly feel the need to emphasize this aspect when someone hits 40... People look great at any age and many people in their 40ies look much better than people in their 20ies... It is sad that women's magazines still feel the need to do that as we know how male dominated world likes to ''punish'' them for their age...

 

[vogue28]

Review - 220 Pages

Great Exaggerations
Model: Freja Beha Erichsen
Photographer: Patrick Demarchelier
Stylist: Lucinda Chambers
14 Photos

Learning Curves
Cover Star: Renée Zellweger
Photographer: Patrick Demarchelier
Stylist: Verity Parker
8 Photos

Game On
Model: Mica Arganaraz
Photographer: Daniel Jackson
Stylist: Kate Phelan
12 Photos

Open Season
Models: Stella Tennant, Isabella Cawdor & Family
Photographer: Tim Walker
Stylist: Bay Garnett
9 Photos

 

[zzzyao76]

Game On
Model: Mica Arganaraz
Photographer: Daniel Jackson
Stylist: Kate Phelan
12 Photos

Mica

 

[LastNight]

I just got my issue through the door. I actually liked the cover when I saw it posted on here and I think it looks better in person as well. Renée's shoot has some nice pictures; there is a lovely photo of her smiling wearing a red Dior sweater and there are some nice b/w photographs. There's also what appears to be a cover reject printed inside (just as I was hoping) of her in a green Prada dress: it's the same background as the cover but her pose is better - I think it's lovely.

Freja's editorial is in the studio, it's decent but she is wearing these hats with strange chin straps on them in about half the shots and I don't particularly like them. Mica's ed is a mix of studio shots on a pale blue background and outside shots with the sky as the dominant feature in the background, it's very sporty. The Tim Walker shoot has some nice shots as well: it's English countryside, in fields by the sea, with dogs.

Overall, for a filler issue like July, it's not that bad at all and they've certainly had much worse. One thing I noticed though was that the front of book pages seem very cluttered and poorly layed out - but I never pay too much attention to that part of the magazine anyway. I'd post some snapshots but the HQ digital pages will show up on here soon enough I'm sure.

 

[Benn98]

Part of the reason why magazines run 'Age' issues is because their demographic in most cases consists of various age groups (apparently nearly half of British Vogue's readers are 40+). And since fashion is mostly represented by youth, the 40+ clan just don't get nearly as much coverage as their younger counterparts. It's not even as though an 'age' issue is solely dedicated to older women, the younger ones still get their usual amount of press in them. So it's a bit idealistic for people to call for an end of this, because as we've seen in the past, nothing will actually change. Everything will just revert back to the normative young face dominating cover and editorials.

Most magazines don't function independently from fashion. There are of course some who goes against the grain (British Harper's, the British, American, Australian and French editions of Vogue), but if you're gunning for an ageless mindset in fashion, maybe you should rather look to designers and photographers for change. If we don't see older women in campaigns, why would we see them on magazine covers and in features?

 

[dodencebt]

Vogue has published the first photo from her spread. She looks much more natural here than on the cover to be honest.


vogue.co.uk

 

[Creative]

Most magazines don't function independently from fashion. There are of course some who goes against the grain (British Harper's, the British, American, Australian and French editions of Vogue), but if you're gunning for an ageless mindset in fashion, maybe you should rather look to designers and photographers for change. If we don't see older women in campaigns, why would we see them on magazine covers and in features?

What I meant is that if you want to give the cover to an old lady, do it, but don't use it as a pretext to sell the issue... Don't put headlines making a deal out of the subject's age, trying to say beauty is ageless when most of what you do is modeled by 15 year old girls. I find it quite cynical and fake. That's the reason why I'm not fine with this. When other people, like Philo, Karl, Lang, Carine or even Riccardo do it, it feels very genuine. When Franca did the black issue, I felt exactly like this. If Yves chose more black girls than white girls for one of his shows, it was because he liked them over the white girls, he didn't want to make a statement, the skin tone didn't matter... It wasn't "marketed".

When Carine put Denueve in the cover of VP you didn't get a single "age" related headline; she put her because she's a French icon and she wanted her in the cover, her age didn't matter. It would be absurd to make a statement about age when 98% of her mag is modeled by beautiful young girls... And putting her in the cover without a single headline about age is actually more useful for society than aproaching the topic of age in a very 'capitalist' and 'low' way like they did this time here or in Vogue US...

Anyway, and this is maybe one the most unpopular opinion here in tfs, I don't think a private bussiness as vain as this one should act as a people "openminder" in terms of age, sexuality, diversity, body shapes, height... When they do it it feels so forced and fake, and it's just becaue they think they will sell more...

Actually, I imagine a 45 year old woman buying this thinking: 'Let's buy this to see if they give some advice of how to wear more juvenile clothes without looking too young cause maybe I'm looking too mature as of late'. Which is quite different from having an old lady in the cover with a great style and embracing her circumstances and inspiring other people...

 

[vogue28]

I just got my issue through the door. I actually liked the cover when I saw it posted on here and I think it looks better in person as well. Renée's shoot has some nice pictures; there is a lovely photo of her smiling wearing a red Dior sweater and there are some nice b/w photographs. There's also what appears to be a cover reject printed inside (just as I was hoping) of her in a green Prada dress: it's the same background as the cover but her pose is better - I think it's lovely.

Couldn't agree more! I was in the same boat as everyone else when the cover first came to light. Hated it, thought it was boring, Renée looked strange and hated the styling. Yet the more I've came in contact with it over today and seeing it in person, I'm actually quite fond of it. By no means is it my favourite British Vogue cover but it does remind me of the good ol' days and kinda took me back to past covers of theirs.

 

[Les_Sucettes]

Part of the reason why magazines run 'Age' issues is because their demographic in most cases consists of various age groups (apparently nearly half of British Vogue's readers are 40+). And since fashion is mostly represented by youth, the 40+ clan just don't get nearly as much coverage as their younger counterparts. It's not even as though an 'age' issue is solely dedicated to older women, the younger ones still get their usual amount of press in them. So it's a bit idealistic for people to call for an end of this, because as we've seen in the past, nothing will actually change. Everything will just revert back to the normative young face dominating cover and editorials.

Most magazines don't function independently from fashion. There are of course some who goes against the grain (British Harper's, the British, American, Australian and French editions of Vogue), but if you're gunning for an ageless mindset in fashion, maybe you should rather look to designers and photographers for change. If we don't see older women in campaigns, why would we see them on magazine covers and in features?

But that's exactly the problem for me, Ben. We do not need an age issue, or any token issue. The fact that magazines continue to do this to compensate for the fact that there is indeed a "default" concept of beauty for fashion makes this issues even more hateful. Besides i do think this idea that the public is clamouring for youth is quite outdated, why the magazines do not change their tune is baffling, if we take as a measure for example the endless and enduring popularity of the "parisien look" , and the millions of copycats and books it inspired, it would be hard to believe, most of inspiration actually comes from women over 40.

 

[jal718]

What an awful cover

 

[LastNight]

Seeing as no HQ images have surfaced yet, I took some quick previews on my phone for anyone interested

Freja by Demarchelier:


Renée by Demarchelier:


Mica by Daniel Jackson:


Tim Walker:

Photos by me from UK Vogue July 2016

 

[AD011620]

How many times Stella Tennant and her family are going to be featured in the British Vogue? Okay, we got it! She is really posh and comes from a family with royal connections. Now pass this material onto Tatler!

 

[whitewine82]

OMG what they did to her? Her's face looks like she is pain and this pose is weird.
All this reminds me those pictures that these girls are always posting on facebook that a friend, who's bought a camera last month, take of her in the park of the city.

 

[dancorpse]

Expecting Tim Walker's ed!

 

[HeatherAnne]

How many times Stella Tennant and her family are going to be featured in the British Vogue? Okay, we got it! She is really posh and comes from a family with royal connections. Now pass this material onto Tatler!

I'm a Stella Tennant fan, butttt you've got a point.

Not to mention this equally posh, but completely bland, Jean Campbell.

And as a whole, nobody can convince me this is not one of the most boring previews of all time.

 

[gius]

Oh it looks quite good. Thank you lastnight
Maybe even typical like the one with Helen Bonham Carter as others have mentioned but I couldn't care ♡ and that one then too

 

[fiqary]

This is a really bad cover. Looks so freaking cheap. Lighting is HORRIBLE.