We Are All Tired of Kate Moss

British Vogue's September 2010 issue. Bryanboy says "I look at that cover and there's no WOW factor."

I follow Bryanboy’s blog, I like that he is always so thankful about the nice things that happen to him (like getting invited to the Chanel Haute Couture show) and that he rarely posts any negative criticism. So this recent post definitely caught my eye, he has posted an image of the cover of British Vogue’s September issue, and criticized that it was Kate Moss’ 30th UK Vogue cover, and her 6th September issue cover (the September issue is the biggest, most important magazine issue of the year.)

More Kate Moss: British Vogue September 2009

I am not surprised that Kate Moss is one the cover of British Vogue…again. It takes a lot to surprise me these days, when it comes to glossy fashion magazines. There is no thrill, excitement, or joy involved in reading these magazines, they are purely work for me. But when Bryanboy wrote “I just think it’s sad that we have to look elsewhere to get what we want from the magazines that we love…” I remembered that there was a time, a long time ago, when I actually took great pleasure in reading fashion magazines.

The reason why I got into fashion in the first place, was thanks to my mother’s copies of Vogue and French Elle. (One day I’ll post some of the fashion illustrations I did when I was 9 years old. Very slutty dresses.) When I started my career in fashion, in the late 90′s, I loved fashion magazines, even US Vogue was exciting. Nowadays, I read them purely for the information I need to know: who is one the cover, what brands they are featuring, what pieces they are featuring, and who is on the masthead. They are business, not pleasure.

Kate Moss on the cover of British Vogue April 2010

It is rare that I open a fashion magazine and stare in awe at the images, or devour the articles. What’s happened to magazine publishing? I guess difficult economic climate, and the pressure to retain or increase advertising revenues means that magazines can’t just post beautiful images and stuff they love. Maybe we have reached a new era of publishing, and magazines will no longer be our source of inspiration, because of the control the advertisers have. Maybe we need to look elsewhere (online?) to find inspiration.

I couldn’t agree more that Kate Moss is an extremely tedious choice of a cover model for British Vogue’s September issue. It is like choosing the most boring, most safe option. Kate is fabulous, and a true icon, but I really feel her days are over, for now. She needs to take a break for a few years, so that she can “come back” and be exciting again. British Vogue could have been safe and still somewhat interesting by putting Lara Stone, or Doutzen Kroes on the cover. Someone that reflects the season, which is all about curves, not waifs.

British Vogue, October 2008. Kate Moss, again.

Am I being overly critical? Or ridiculously nostalgic? I really feel that magazines these days have become catalogues of the season, rather than thoughtful, insightful publications. Since I’m being nostalgic, here are some beautiful UK Vogue covers…from back in the day.

An early Kate Moss cover: January 1995. Very cool.

Amazing colour on British Vogue's September 1991 cover.

Sun Style Shape on British Vogue's May 1983 cover.

British Vogue May 1966: a beautiful play on colour and shape.

Once the September issues have all come out, I’ll do a Love and Loathe on the covers…let’s hope there are some good ones.

All images from Vogue.co.uk.