Look, I like nostalgia as much as the next bloke Lola, but in equal parts with a heavy dose of realism and at least a touch of futurism. It's a bit baffling that Porter does Chanel's futurisric collection more justice with a Mars themed edit than French Vogue. When last have you actually seen something fiercely contemporary or futuristic in this magazine? Koller was the only one who had some semblance of individuality, of self, maybe Barbieri as well. The rest are no better than ladies in waiting.
And I know the French fashion appears to be losing the jewels in their crown hand over foot so I imagine that is why they've elected to pine for 'the good old days.' But with the position she's in, isn't there even a faint need to innovate? Anna is a businesswoman, Alexandra was an intellectual, Franca had a strong visual direction, what will her legacy be? As it is she's been the EIC with the most styling chops ever since she got the job, yet her Vogue is so stale.
This job should've gone to Marie Amélie, but maybe her being too chummy with Nicolas may have counted against her. Marie Amélie worked for worldwide editions and that diversity is what kept her work fresh.
I wonder when VP became so commercial because it was never their objective under Carine. She didn't put Paris Hilton on the cover to shift copies, it was to ruffle feathers, to make a statement, a 'sign of the times.' The reason why you're see Kaia Gerber on this cover is because the last one with her mum sold halfway decent and this is Alt's way to give us someone vaguely 'now' (even if this is only Kaia's second appearance, meaning she's got no actual connection with the magazine) while keeping the suits happy.
Your comment makes me think about putting a stylist as an EIC for a magazine like Vogue.
In the usual setting of a magazine, stylists are the ones who go out, who discover, worship new talents. Their job is to be out and about to find new ways to propose fashion.
So, when a stylist give up on that, she is also loosing track with what's going on.
Emmanuelle had her peak when she was collaborating with Chanel, Gucci, Balmain...etc. She had a voice outside of her magazine and that helped her renew her aesthetic and being aware of what's going on. She is still today but in a different way.
Carine was a wild cat. She became the EIC of Vogue because she was the hottest french stylist in the world at that time. MAS was working in the magazine already for a longtime and Emmanuelle joined the magazine right before while having being an EIC at 20Ans herself.
Carine never had to compromise on her styling gigs. She didn't spent the amount of time Emmanuelle spend in the office. I don't think MAS would have been a great EIC for the magazine after all.
She is very elitist in her approach to fashion. Yes, she has a great style but look at her eds. She was pretty much a storyteller. Emmanuelle is very style oriented. She is not the one who will come-up with a very elaborate story. Most if not all of her stories are great because the styling is great, the girl is great and the photographer is well chosen.
When you think about Carine and MAS, the styling is great but it's not necessarly the thing you remember the most in their stories. And that's why Emmanuelle aesthetic became so proeminent.
The magazine became commercial because it was the easiest and most obvious way to go after the rather controversial but glorious Carine years. The climate in 2011 in the fashion world didn't allowed any risks. It was impossible given the exposure and the success of the magazine to go bck to something intellectual similar to the Joan Juliet Buck years or even the very elitist Colombine Pringle years.
Emmanuelle will be remember as the "French girl next door". Her magazine is safe but in a time of doubts (look at now between VI, VUK and all), it is still the only Vogue that we can count on.
Just look at this cover. It's not exceptional but it is still 1000* more exciting and memorable than two hollywood actress in a reprint or a model wearing a very elaborate Vuitton look. She knows how to create an impact.