Vogue is quite often criticized, or even attacked, by some sharp and witty readers and other magazine-lovers yet their sales keep their standards as high as -or higher than- before. Meanwhile the best-known fashion publication is more and more compared to the likes of Elle and Marie-Claire, another breed of magazines is spreading its wings trying to touch the sky.
Those we call indie mags have never been so popular in spite of the challenges printed press is currently facing. Quality, creativity and originality are the key-words for these alternative glossies that are praised by the critical and picky buyers while top-notch contributors are making the headlines on their covers. If some have been around for years already, some youngers are bringing new blood to the editorial scene.
It's no longer just about Dazed & Confused or i-D, not even just 10 Magazine, V Mag or POP. The phenomenon isn't new but its impact is significantly deeper. There has always been numerous magazines that aim to offer an alternative to Vogue and the other mainstream franchises. Some of them appeared just to disappear soon after their launch... Easy come, easy go and even easy resurrect sounded like the daily routine of these independent fashion publications and quite a bunch were more experimental than anything else (which isn't bad at all in itself).
What has changed is their popularity and the kind of contributors they attract. Count on big names of photography to deliver some different visuals than what all the Meisel, Testino and Mert & Marcus of this world are currently producing. Raw, raunchy or refined, the contents of magazines like Acne Paper, Antidote, Grey or Intermission is rich and diverse, and generally beg to differ from the overretouched and saturated glamour that dominates the mass-appealing magazines.
It's not only a matter of image and aesthetic, it's also a question of visibility and audience (sales, somehow). French magazine Double used to be quite unknown and underground not so long ago and, apart from our national bookstores, I had never seen it abroad while travelling. Today, the same Double is available overseas and has been warmly welcomed in New York City. Another sign of the times is Corduroy Magazine's multiple covers for its latest issue, featuring models ranging from Alek Wek and Angela Lindvall to Erin O'Connor and Eva Herzigova. Not a small line-up and even less an anonymous one. On the same note, Centrefold Magazine has recently created its own hype by having no other than Kate Moss (by the always-inspired Venetia Scott) on its cover and Cindy Crawford in one of its main editorials.
Next to these two that look already steaming hot, newer mags hiring younger talents are also getting their slice of spotlights: USED Magazine might be the best example, collaborating with up-and-coming photographers like Greta Ilieva and avant-garde editorial models like Ehren Dorsey or Erika Linder (not the typical runway gazelles with sixty shows a season yet some of the best in print of their generation). HUSK Magazine apparently follows a similar pattern with its recent release and Balenciaga's darling Julier Bugge gracing the cover. Add to the list some others like Intermission, Antidote, Lula or Doingbird - all remaining true to their aesthetics and readers while strengthening their position in the fashion magazine landscape.
All in all, this profusion of magazines gives the readers a diversified offer that have rarely reached a similar peak and is completed by various quality online publications displaying a variety of contents that fits to different types of eyes. Whether this situation is made to last (remember fashion doesn't often embrace long-lasting waves) or is fated to fade isn't today's issue.
The single fact it's all bubbling and buzzing at the moment can already be understood as promising sign that fashion photography hasn't stopped evolving and renewing itself, and magazines are moving along. No matter what the future has in store for all of them, they have the merit to exist and contribute actively to maintain (at least) a certain level of creativity in a fashion business that seems more and more governed by economic requirements.
CREDITS: Double Magazine by Walter Pfeiffer / USED Magazine by Greta Ilieva / Intermission Magazine by Patrik Sehlstedt / HUSK Magazine by Willem Jaspert / Centrefold Magazine by Venetia Scott / Corduroy Magazine by Peter Ash Lee.