Vogue Australia April 2016 by Mario Testino

[AL92]

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[DutchHomme]

Looks great!
Love the colors ... but she looks uncomfortable

 

[AL92]

Lara Stone covers the Mario Testino guest-edited April issue, alongside David Genat, Jordan, Zac and Louis Stenmark.

 

[jeffandtheworld]

So much better than his Vogue Italia issue, though her face is a bit off.

 

[Nepenthes]

This is really great! Love the composition!

 

[madzedre]

maybe if she had another face, but I like the concept

 

[Bertrando3]

I like the idea of the background, the various models in these poses but I wish it wasn´t a double page cover (I have never liked them on any magazine) and she looked happier because she looks unsure or in an uncomfortable position. I also find this cover much better respect to Testino´s special Italian Vogue indeed.

 

[kokobombon]

I kinda like it but Lara´s expression not so much, she looks so uncomfortable and there are too many guys, they´re messing the composition with just their heads.
I wish it was more dark though, this looks too summery for April imo...

 

[GlamVal]

Love the idea, but Lara looks so uncomfortable. I don't like the hair on her face...

 

[Sensation]

Nice cover, glad to see Lara.

 

[SpeakThatJDunn]

Wasn't this an issue dedicated to Australia? He shot all the big Australian models? And Lara got the cover?

It's okay. Hardly reads "special issue".

 

[Bertrando3]

Wasn't this an issue dedicated to Australia? He shot all the big Australian models? And Lara got the cover? It's okay. Hardly reads "special issue".

And if he wanted to pay respect to Australia he could have just used one of the hundreds of extremely successful fashion models there for example lol: Gemma Ward, Nicole Triunfo, Shanina, Sarah Murdoch, Meagan Gale, Elle McPherson and the list goes on and on.

 

[Wolkfolk]

Testino needs to take a long break !!

This looks very amateurish. The models look uncomfortable, the composition could've been great but is sloppy, Lara's face looks weird and everything feels dated. The cover is almost in the same vein of his iconic Gucci ads but without their shine. Maybe it happens to every photographers at some point but his work is really looking like a very pale copy of himself lately.

I hate the styling. That white overload gives me some tacky 90s Ibiza or St Tropez realness. Also if you want Sidney or Australia to shine why not put an Australian model on the cover instead of Lara ?! Because the blurry sight of Sidney in the background is irrelevant.

 

[RanThe]

I like the soft feeling and I like Lara Stone, but this pullout cover I hate and she looks a little stiff.

Also, like others have said. Mario dedication to Australia, but an Australian model not getting a cover when he shot the biggest one GEMMA WARD! I'm tired of Mario Testino and his tired photographs.

 

[Benn98]

You're right, it does look like a watered-down Gucci ad from the 90's! The men feels too random for me, besides, I'm not a fan of male models to begin with. And Lara doesn't look like herself.

I fail to get the idea of a special Testino issue, when the magazine functions exceptionally well without him. Vogue Australia never needed him! I'm certain the angle was purely a move asserting his prestige - beyond TFS, Testino seems to be a pretty big deal. Not sure why because he turns out such tosh on a regular basis.

 

[GivenchyHomme]

All the guys look average to me. And he really did a number on her face in photoshop.

 

[Deleted member 116957]

Well, it could be worse.

 

[MON]

I would have loved this if Lara had a different facial expression. She looks like she's uncomfortable

 

[AL92]

Editor's letter: April 2016

Edwina McCann introduces the April issue of Vogue Australia.

Towards the end of his three-week stay in Sydney, Mario Testino commented that I was very patriotic. I’d never thought of myself as particularly patriotic, but, as on so many other occasions during this project, I’ve come to believe his observations are astute. Seeing some of the aerial images of the city I grew up in (one image focuses on the Sydney harbourside neighbourhood I was lucky enough to call home) gave me goose bumps.

I love Australia. I love Sydney.

I love the creativity of Australians and their “can do” attitude. I love the positivity, the beauty of the landscape and oceans and the extraordinary light. There are plenty of problems, but we’re indeed a lucky country. Seeing our surroundings, our birdlife and fauna and some models we’ve worked with for many years through Mario’s fresh eyes reshaped my view of this place and its talent. Mario is a deep thinker and a very talented editor. This is his 10th edition of a Vogue title as editor. It’s a milestone of sorts for him, and a huge milestone for us at Vogue Australia. I’ve admired Mario’s work since I started obsessing over fashion photography in the early 1990s while a young fashion assistant at Vogue.

His versatility as a photographer is unusual, and though each shoot is very different, every photo is so clearly of his making. Although he can shoot in many different styles, his images are always his own, always Testino: polished, beautiful and full of optimism and charm, like the man himself. The passion and intelligence he brought to this project was inspiring. Having now read that he studied economics and loved maths, I believe he possesses one of those rare minds in which the right and the left side are in perfect balance.

This magazine is so much more than just beautiful pictures. From the very beginning, Mario wanted to explore the psyche of the Australian male; wondered why so many eccentrics were born here and yet had to travel overseas to feel acceptance and questioned why our open-minded society has been unable to reconcile gay marriage. He’s not a critic but a curious observer and is genuinely interested in encouraging thought, debate and the role creativity plays in enabling us to reconsider ourselves in a more introspective manner. Thanks to his research, we discovered the talents of artist Tony Albert, and were able to introduce him to those of Joshua Yeldham.

During our many conversations and meetings, he also reinforced my belief that a magazine, or any creative endeavour, is only as good as the sum of its parts. As with most things in life, it’s all about balance. Vogue is only as good as the team that puts it together, and each person who contributes to an issue, no matter how junior or senior the role, plays a part. In this age of the individual, we so often lose sight of the value of the collective and the importance of taking a holistic view. To create a truly exceptional image, everyone on set must produce perfect work.

To this end, the day after he finished shooting, Mario spent time with the Vogue Australia team to discuss his inspirations and challenges and inspire us all to create pages and commission features in tune with his wonderful work. The team he pulled together to create his images consisted of many expat Australians who were only too pleased to come home and work on this special project. Interestingly, he commented that before coming to Australia for this – his first trip – he had a view of Australians and the country based solely on the many talented expats he had photographed or worked with.

Now, I believe his fascination with our far-flung land has grown into a love that I hope will be lifelong. From our first conversation and the suggestion of this project at a Louis Vuitton show in Paris two years ago, Mario’s generosity and spirit has infected us all. The anticipation of this issue in our office was only bettered by the excitement of its completion and being able to share this beautiful magazine with you now.

Thank you to Mario, to his wonderful team, and to mine, for making this edition of Vogue so unforgettably special.

source: vogue.com.au​

 

[AL92]

April 2016: a letter from Mario Testino

Mario Testino introduces his guest edited issue of Vogue Australia.

This is the 10th special edition of an international Vogue that I’ve guest-edited. It’s a milestone for me, both in number but also in its creation. When I do these issues, I usually come to the place in which they’re rooted to really absorb everything they’re about, as the place is so important to the identity of the magazine and the audience. I was surprised and inspired by so much that Australia had to offer, both before I arrived and even more so when I touched down in early January to begin working on this issue. Australia, and specifically Sydney (where I spent much of my time on this trip), really moved me in many ways. I travel almost constantly for my work and have done so for pretty much my entire career. It’s rare that I stay in a place longer than four or five days before I’m back on a plane and going to the next job. This time, however, I ended up changing my entire plans to stay in Sydney longer than I was meant to. I can’t remember the last time that happened.

As I’d never been to Australia before now – which I still can’t believe, but am convinced it’ll feature on my travel itineraries more regularly from now on – I approached this issue to begin with a celebration of the Australian impact internationally. When I arrived in Australia, I immediately felt very comfortable, instantly seeing the similarities between the cultures of Sydney and Lima, Peru, where I’m from. Maybe it was the beach, maybe it was the surfing, maybe it was the idea of being in contact with the sea … This led to the sense of freedom and openness, which made me realise that it was the quality I had also recognised in all the Australian friends I knew. Perhaps it was this quality that had made them so successful internationally.

I began trying to document this through the people we featured in this issue. Lara Stone is one of the models I’ve worked with a lot over the years. When she first started out, she took the fashion world by storm with her own sense of freedom. She demonstrated how completely comfortable she was in her own body. She wasn’t the same shape as many of the other models at the time, but her attitude won people over. Stella Lucia, a fresh-faced Austrian model, is the sort of beauty that is to be discovered, and as a photographer I’m always out to discover. When I photograph Lucia, I see how incredible she is.

Then there are people like Catherine McNeil and Catherine Baba, both Australian, both successful internationally, both amazing personalities and both completely unique. Individuality is important and I wanted to promote it with this issue. As we see with both McNeil and Baba, they have stuck to their own guns and conquered. There’s a perception internationally of what it is to be an “Australian man”. The fearless, traditionally masculine-type man identified through well-known characters and personalities like Paul Hogan’s Crocodile Dundee, the late Steve Irwin and the many sports stars who come from the country. One thing I discovered is that the modern Australian man is more than this; he can be softer and more cultivated, so I wanted to touch upon this in the magazine, too. I was also very curious to learn about Australia’s Indigenous culture and the things we can learn from this in our own contemporary way of life.

I know well from my own upbringing in Peru the value and importance of researching your roots and how that brings you closer to your national identity. In 2007, I discovered an archive of traditional dress and costume in the mountainous region of Cusco in Peru. I was fascinated about what I learnt going through these costumes, how every detail – the embellishments, embroidery, appliqué and colour – symbolises something about the wearer or occasions in which the dresses are worn. I documented these dresses over a five-year period and built up a body of work, which is known as Alta Moda (“high fashion” in Spanish).

I exhibited these pictures in Peru for the first time in 2013, at my museum, MATE (pronounced mAH-teh). Before exhibiting them, people would tell me how beautiful they were but that they didn’t think they’d resonate with contemporary Peruvians, who were all about the here and now. It was interesting to see the reaction because people really connected with them and really wanted to know more. Since then, the exhibition has been shown in Paris, New York and Dallas – taking a bit of Peruvian culture overseas. It was this spirit that I wanted to explore in Australian indigenous culture, so I met with Australian contemporary artist Tony Albert, who touches upon these matters in his own work.

For this issue we have decided to collaborate on a piece of unique work that investigates this (from page 206). I came to realise, and witness, the wonderful mix that Australia has to offer. In this issue, I’ve tried to cover many different aspects that I like. In a way, I felt this in Sydney, as one can have this sophisticated harbourside life, or a city life in the CBD, or a surfer life on Bondi Beach – all these possibilities, and more, exist in one place. When putting an issue like this together, you need to have variety. I remember one of my editors saying to me, when I started out as a photographer, that the level of a photographer is defined by his or her range. I have constantly tried to identify that in my career and these issues have given me the possibility to push my range. While shooting in Sydney, there was simply endless inspiration to push those boundaries, as well as the environment to welcome and encourage it.

I want to thank everyone who has been a part of this issue and who made my stay so pleasant and memorable. Sydney – and Australia – is many things, but one thing all the people I met had in common was a great understanding of what it is to be a good host, a quality you don’t see everywhere around the world today.

I can’t wait until next time.
Mario

source: vogue.com.au​