Vogue Portugal July/August 2020 : The Madness Issue

[honeycombchild]

Yup, it’s been pulled.

Vogue Portugal pulls mental illness cover

 

[AFWQ]

They have the liberty to express how they wish to, but they cannot "say" they don't want this reaction to what happened when people on social media don't agree with it, find it offensive... They also have liberty to express their opinion. This magazine has become very much dependent on its interaction on social media. So what happens is only natural in that sense. (Franca also had a lot of controversy at the time... Isn't because of social media things gotten harder... They could keep it up, they decide not to. But I personally don't agree with a comparison with Franca's work, but understand why people do it because is a reference they have, and this team likes "inspiring" their work on other professionals)

I don't think this cover would have created this reaction it did if they simply hadn't put "madness" along with it (most of the explanations people said was regarding that two points). This conversation wasn't just happening on Instagram but on twitter as well. And I think this perception people still have in Portugal does play along like a big piece in it. People here still call people with mental illness, mad. And isn't just one or two people... It's the mentality. It isn't a politically correct aspect of it. A lot of people explain their point on why they found it offensive.

It's also a bit ironic how the first cover they post was exactly the one causing controversy. This Publisher tends to like to create controversy in some sense.

It seems some people got block... Not sure if this is true... but seems to have happened because people in the Portuguese Fashion Industry didn't agree or liked the image this was creating of the industry. This reach the Guardian...

I personally do not agree this is the best way to approach it, in any way if they "want to start a conversation" as directors said on Público newspaper. All of this could have been avoid and people could be, who does enjoy their work... the 3 covers.

 

[Sweet rus]

They have the liberty to express how they wish to, but they cannot "say" they don't want this reaction to what happened when people on social media don't agree with it, find it offensive...

people are expressing themselves too much. Stay at home with your mom and cry, erase your social media, and don't come back until you grow up, you little snowflake.

I am so frustrated with people nowadays, it's like they want to live in a sterile, fairy tail world, the world should stop adjusting to please whiny children. I am so tired of people doing smth, not sticking with it, then apologizing

 

[AFWQ]

people are expressing themselves too much. Stay at home with your mom and cry, erase your social media, and don't come back until you grow up, you little snowflake.

I am so frustrated with people nowadays, it's like they want to live in a sterile, fairy tail world, the world should stop adjusting to please whiny children. I am so tired of people doing smth, not sticking with it, then apologizing

Did you found it offensive people have the right to express their own thoughts or opinion? Since you are one saying for other people to go stay at home with their moms and cry, and criticize for, in your perspective, living in a bubble when they simply express their opinion on it.

Social Media isn't just our own view or opinion dear. It has a lot of different opinions and it can be messy. Very messy. And that includes people who don't agree with it, who get offended with it, and so on...

All this team heavily uses social media, they should know this better than anyone.

The only issues I had of it... 50% of it was publicity... Sometimes I see them having some type of partnership. I hope that didn't play a piece in this decision.

 

[Sweet rus]

Social Media isn't just our own view or opinion dear. It has a lot of different opinions and it can be messy. Very messy. And that includes people who don't agree with it, who get offended with it, and so on...

All this team heavily uses social media, they should know this better than anyone.

The only issues I had of it... 50% of it was publicity... Sometimes I see them having some type of partnership. I hope that didn't play a piece in this decision.

I am totally fine with different opinions, in fact I am all FOR embracing our differences. I am ok with people expressing their opinions, even if it's different from mine, the issue is people who are sensitive (I think a cultural difference plays a huge part here too, because literally unless you come for me and tell me, for example, I am stupid/ugly (or smth very bad about my family), I just don't get offended) has brought in extreme level of political correctness and turned it into a form of fascism, like I mentioned previously. People who are sensitive don't just express their opinions, they fight and they bring in a pile of sh*t, they don't just embrace different opinions, they push you to accept theirs or shut up. My post might sound somewhat hysterical, but that's because in the past few months I have been living through extreme level of stress and the amount of toxicity that social is filled in can make you feel oppressed and depressed, and it terrifies me what place we have come to. I had to block/unfollow a lot of people. C'mon, fashion is not that serious! I don't even know why I am arguing about this cover, cause I personally hate it

 

[[Piece Of Me]]

It was rightly pulled in my opinion. I don't think the image itself was super offensive (Italian Vogue did it earlier, and much better) but combined with the tag line "the madness issue" was what made it very insensitive. Mental health and madness are two very different things, which a lot of people still don't see (hence the taboo around mental health), and therefore a cover likes this just makes it extra hard. It's good to have consersations and to make some risky covers, but you can take things too far and that's exactly what they did here.

 

[honeycombchild]

I don’t think the image itself was appallingly offensive but I dislike the angle they’ve decided to put on this whole concept. ‘Madness’ should never have been what they lead with, they did so because it was punchy and headline grabbing.

I’m all for the mental health conversation being had, I can’t think of another time in my lifetime that our global culture that’s been more of a strain on individuals mental health than what is happening right now.

And to those utterly blind, ignorant comments above about if the discussion still needs to be had and we’re too quick to share our personal misery with the world? Have a word with yourself. Do better.

The very fact the word ‘madness’ is being used here at all is evidence enough that there is still a stigma attached to suffering from issues with your mental health and depression.

I wish more mainstream media would objectively look at these issues but ultimately, Vogue Portugal approached an issue that to many is an incredibly hard thing to navigate with a sensationalist angle designed to grab headlines.

 

[AFWQ]

It seems some people got block... Not sure if this is true... but seems to have happened because people in the Portuguese Fashion Industry didn't agree or liked the image this was creating of the industry. This reach the Guardian...

Just wanted to add this: it is true. They went around blocking people.
Although this team likes to say they defends free speech.

 

[KoV]

To me, the issue isn't that people didn't like it or were personally offended by it (though I don't really understand the offense). The issue is that instead of just expressing a negative opinion, it seemingly turned into a "because I don't like/am offended by this, it cannot exist in the world for anyone else, either" scenario. Instead of having a little conviction around a cover they produced and seemingly stood behind, Vogue Portugal caved and pulled the issue. I hate to see it.

To start with, I suppose I should say I personally don't like the cover. I think it's a very literal and obvious interpretation of "Madness" and the mental health theme. I believe in the USA, roughly half the population experiences mental illness in their life. I don't know the global statistics but I imagine it's relatively even across the board, though many have limited access to the resources needed to treat/diagnose it, so maybe official figures wont back up my assumption. Pure conjecture. Anyways, it's incredibly ubiquitous and therefore you have BILLIONS of people experiencing mental illness, no two people in exactly the same way. It is *such* a broad theme and so widely experienced. Currently the first cover has nearly double the "likes" any of the other covers do on VP's instagram. That means tens of thousands of people, many of whom likely suffer or have suffered from mental illness, liked this interpretation. Which, by the way, is seemingly not a personal affront to anyone. Fashion photography is a form of art, and whether or not I like it, I have to acknowledge that a photographer, make-up artists, stylists, etc. came together to create this particular interpretation. Banal as it is, it's an artist's take on a theme. One which I don't think a few people on twitter who personally did not like it should be given the power to censor.

I realize censorship is a complex issue. Right now there are statues, arguably with some artistic merit, being rightfully removed from public spaces and there are others that are being contextualized with plaques and such. I agree with those changes. Righteous anger over the glorification of people who fought to maintain slavery or publicly funded and displayed art that was created to symbolically glorify wicked people is reasonable. Demanding the removal of a temporary magazine cover you're not being forced to purchase (even if you wanted the issue, you have 3 other covers to select) because you personally don't like how it interprets mental health, however, is a whole different thing, and incredibly ridiculous. I've yet to really hear anyone explain *why* the image offends them so. It feels like a thoughtless knee-jerk reaction to me. The photo is anachronistic. Mental health facilities don't look like this now, and likely they never really did, but it's clear they're going for a retro image. To me, that creates a comfortable distance between the image and reality that makes it feel as though it's not exploiting the actual struggle of mental illness. There is no violence being done toward the mental health patient in the photo. There is no racism on display, nor homophobia. There's no gender bias, no ageism, no religious imagery, no politics, nothing! It's a Mental institution patient taking a bath, looking pensive, flanked by a pair of medical professionals. How is that any more offensive than any other image depicting depression or any other mental illness. Should the painting "Ophelia" by John Everett Millais be removed from Tate Britain for depicting suicide? For the life of me, I can't see what offense has been committed that justifies pulling the image. The word "madness" could, I suppose, be used in a pejorative way, but I don't think it often is, certainly not currently. Like the image itself it's kind of anachronistic. It's a non-specific way to describe mental illness in general and not a medical term. So in my eyes, "the Madness Issue" is just a more pleasing and poetic way to say "the Mental Health Issue". Besides, all four covers are dubbed "The Madness Issue", and only one was removed so I think it's mostly the image itself people took umbrage with, not the language. So again, what specifically about the image is so offensive that it doesn't have the right to exist, that a photographer's work must be censored?

 

[KateTheGreatest]

I feel bad for the model of the cover, all models want Vogue covers; she must have been so excited and then this happens!

 

[JPineapple]

I feel bad for the model of the cover, all models want Vogue covers; she must have been so excited and then this happens!

And she received a lot of hate, disgusting how social media works

 

[mikel]

That’s horrible indeed!

 

[Benn98]

The thought never even crossed my mind to think of the model's role in that cover because I just assumed all of us would know they have very little say in shoots, especially those who are not Kate/Naomi etc. So I do sympathise with all the hate she's been getting. Though I must add based on the extensive briefing she got it sounds more like this was a Kendall/Pepsi situation and not a Zuo Ye/Dolce & Gabbana one, who had no idea how that clip would be edited. And if we feel sorry for the hate this girl is getting should we have felt sorry for the backlash on Kendall as well? Questions, questions....

I wish people would just put a little bit more thought into mapping out statements of a serious nature. Posting a picture of yourself and your perfectly hot, near-naked body above such heartfelt sentiments is maybe not the wisest move. What does it have to do with your wording or mental health? It just reeks of self-promotion, opportunism, and subtle 'caping' for Branislav to secure more bookings, sorry.

 

[AFWQ]

There is a conversation going around in the industry that Conde Nast could have been the one ordering Lighthouse to remove the cover, after the media coverage, react it cause on social media.

The biggest media in the UK, Brazil and in Portugal spoke of it. A lot of references to Sara Sampaio and her comments. Also how offensive people got from the interpretation of "Asylum" in photo and choice of title.

And also, Industry in Portugal doesn't view themselves in this image Vogue Portugal wants to create with this topic. How much COVID is affecting exportations (industry growth has depended highly from it) and how this is painting a bad image from a magazine, being a portuguese magazine, they seem to sense this could affect industry image, the portuguese name, being reaction the cover had.

 

[phungnam96]

And she received a lot of hate, disgusting how social media works

Why I am not surprised... There are people who dare to send death threat to some reality show contestants.

 

[Hafyiez wafa]