Anna Wintour defends Kamala Harris’ controversial Vogue cover

Anna Wintour defends Kamala Harris’ controversial Vogue cover

by

Written by Jacqui Palumbo, CNN

Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour broke her silence on the front page of the magazine in February in which Kamala Harris, under-elected vice-president, appeared.

In the photo, shot by photographer Tyler Mitchell, Harris is standing in front of pink and green drapery – a nod to the colors of her female Alpha Kappa Alpha – with her distinctive low-top Converse sneakers paired with a black pantsuit and a white T-shirt. Critics intend to call the lighting and styling, calling the image ‘washed out’ and claiming that the casual outfit is not suitable for a historical magazine cover of the first woman and colored person elected vice president of the United States . A source familiar with discussions said Harris’ team believed the cover would contain a different image, with her position in a light blue suit against a golden background (the image was released as a digital cover, and it was especially the only image Mitchell promoted on social media).
In a statement to The New York Times, Wintour said there was “no formal agreement” on the decks, but stressed that “it is absolutely not our intention to downplay the importance of the Vice President’s incredible victory. . “

According to Wintour, the magazine’s creative team believes that the comfortable look is the best choice for the present moment, which connects to the pandemic and turbulent state of the country. She did not comment on the lighting of the statue.

“When the two images arrived at Vogue, we all felt very, very strongly that the less formal portrait of the chosen vice president really reflects the moment in which we lived,” she said in the statement. “We are in the midst of … the most horrific pandemic that takes minute lives, and we felt we were reflecting on this tragic moment in world history, a much less formal picture, something that was very, very accessible and accessible, and really reflected the character of the Biden-Harris campaign … “

“We want nothing more than to celebrate Vice President Harris’ amazing victory and the important moment it is in America’s history, and especially for women of color, around the world,” Wintour told the New York Times in a statement. said. Credit: Edward Berthelot / Getty Images

Wintour is not the only one defending the cover selection. André Leon Talley, the former editor-in-chief of American Vogue, expressed his opinion in an Instagram post on Tuesday.

“(Harris)’s work uniform with her ubiquitous Converse sneakers is aspiring. I predict it will give a trend to all young women around the world and dress like Kamala Harris,” he wrote. “Expanding controversy is absolutely ridiculous.”

Wintour’s statement was read out by Kara Swisher, host of the podcast “Sway”, to precede an interview she conducted on the cover days before it was leaked. In the subsequent interview, Wintour said that Harris chose her own outfit for the cover and explained that she “has a very sure sense of style”. She was excited about the upcoming cover and described it as ‘joyful and optimistic’.

“I can not imagine that there is anyone who is really going to find this coverage, but also positive,” she said. “(It’s) an image of a woman who controls her life that we’re going to lead … the leadership we so desperately need. And to me it’s just a very important, but positive, statement about women and women a force. ‘

.Source