28/03/2014

IN DEFENSE OF KIM KARDASHIAN'S VOGUE COVER

People can be really nasty. The perfect example of this was last Fridays unveiling of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s April Vogue cover. Celebrities, fashionistas and the general public joined the Kimye bashing parade, lauding the cover as tasteless, a terrible decision and almost unanimously, a reason to unsubscribe. But why? Is it because she is a reality star, or is it the Other Thing no one wants to talk about? Kim Kardashian is not white. She is not size zero. She is not six feet tall. In an industry that has been heavily criticised for the homogenization of beauty (sometimes fairly, sometimes not) how can this be anything other than a positive thing? Slowly but surely change is happening. We’ve had Adele and Lena recently on the cover, and now Kim. None of these women are fashion models, however their achievements and contribution to modern culture cannot be underestimated. They have earned these covers.


Apart from all this, the cover is beautiful! Although I question parts of Kim’s makeup (namely the lip colour) and the severely pulled back hair, she looks radiant in her Lanvin gown. The portrait is touching and entirely underserving of the (often cruel) criticism directed towards it. As for questioning Anna Wintour’s judgement, well. This is the woman who turned American Vogue into what many believe to be the world’s leading fashion bible, so we can rest assured that she knows what she is doing. Let’s not forget that Wintour is a saleswoman as much as an editor, and this issue is bound to sell out instantly!
Kim has overhauled her image in the past couple of years and is now one of the best dressed women in the spotlight. Not only does she understand how to dress for her body shape but she proves that high-fashion clothes can be worn by other people than just the models who sell them. If you are in the anti-Kimye camp, think about your reasons for being there. And for everyone threatening to unsubscribe, don’t worry; we can rest assured that Vogue shall survive the tragic loss of your readership.
What do you think of the cover? Was it the right choice?

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