The first fashion magazine was published under the title Cabinet des Modes, ou des Modes Nouvelles, in 1785. Translated to English the title of the magazine will be cabinet of fashions or new fashions. The title indicates that this magazine is about old fashion and new fashion.
In the end the magazine was published 24 issues per year. It was quite a lot at this time. Cabinet des Modes, ou des modes were published every fifteen day. It was around 12 pages long (Miller & McNeil, 2018).
Carbinet des Modes, ou des modes give us an overview about how fashion was at this time. The magazine was published in France. That’s because at this time France was the capital of fashion.
Later on, the magazine changed name to Cabinet des Modes – Le Magazine des Modes Nouvelles Fancaises et Anglaises, it can translate to Cabinet of fashion – The French and English New Fashion magazine. This title is remarkable because now it is not only French fashion that now is important. The fashion of England is so notable that it deserves to be in the title of a magazine. When the magazine, with the new title, was published the people in French were tired of the French fashion (Miller & McNeil, 2018). It was too much rococo. People in French look to England. Fashion of England was now the new (Miller & McNeil, 2018).
The history of Vogue US
Around 100 years after Cabinet des Modes, ou des Modes Nouvelles was published, a new fashion magazine was published. In New York, in 1892, was the first issue of this magazine published (Sølling, 2015). The magazine I’m talking about is Vogue. Today Vogue is one of the most prestigious and powerful magazines in the world. Vogue magazine is not just published in the USA, but also in France, Germany, Italy, UK and some other countries.
It is remarkable that Vogue started in the USA and not in France. An explanation can be that the fashion centrum moved from France to the USA.
The American editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, is one of the most powerful people in the fashion industry. Anna Wintour has been editor-in-chief for Vogue US, since 1988 (2020). Every year, since 1948, Vogue and Anna Wintour have arranged a Costume Institute Gala also called Met Ball. The Met Ball is arranged at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (2020). This is one of the biggest and most important fashion parties of the year. It shows that today Vogue is not just a magazine but also has the power to collect the most important people in the fashion industry. They have the power to choose who should be invited and who should not.
Over the last couple of years Anna Wintour has been criticized for not following the movement that has been in society, both with the Black Life Matters and the new body image. The critics think she is maybe too old, and Vogue US should have a new editor-in-chief.
I think that Vogue US may play too safe and is too boring. I think the critics are right when they say that Vogue US is not following the movement in the society. I think that you can cover the movement in many ways, but I think they are too slow. I could not pretend that Vogue US could end up being like Vogue Italy. But I could ask the critical question: are the American readers too slow to see the new movement? Or are the readers of Vogue US to slow, since the people still buy Vogue US? I am not sure what the answer would be.
References
Miller, S., & McNeil, P. (2018). 2 The History of Print Journalism - From Written to Printed Media. I S. Miller, & P. McNeil, Fashion Journalism - History, theory, and practice (s. 13-38). London : Bloomsbury Academic .
Sølling, J. D. (15. april 2015). Vogue. From Den Store Danske: https://denstoredanske.lex.dk/Vogue
U.Ã¥. (14. November 2020). Vogue (magazine). From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vogue_(magazine)