Image: Vogue
As our forum members pointed out, the pose and layout harken back to Beyoncé’s September 2015 cover. Meanwhile, the substance of the interview with “The Face That Launched a Billion Likes,” i.e. Kendall’s much-discussed, formidable social media presence, seems like a continuation of Wintour’s September 2014 Instagirl-themed issue. Kendall, however, shares the cover with no one. She is, in fact, the first lone model to grace the American glossy’s September chapter since Mario Testino-photographed Kate Moss back in 2011. The issue, which hits newsstands later this month, is now available through pre-order on Amazon.
As with all things Kendall-related, the sight of the Vogue cover prompted much discussion on our forums. Some were (for once) feeling Kendall, but not the cover’s styling or formatting.
“They did her no favors with the layout, shadow font, and cheap background. The image of her is actually really nice…” remarked JesseDillon.
“Wow, actually quite impressed with this!! It could have been far worse. Love this sensual side of Kendall, and while the styling is not up my street, it’s certainly the most daring we’ve seen from them. Not impressed with the empty space and logo. It looks unfinished,” stated Benn98.
A pleasantly surprised HodanChloe seconded: “Not bad tbh! Good cover and an even better editorial. I HATE the grey background and whats with the font???”
Dodencebt added, “I personally like the way Kendall looks on the cover, but it looks like a mock-up. I don’t understand the plain backgrounds that look like they were inserted in Paint, they’re so fake! The editorial I dislike, though. It literally looks it was shot by various different photographers and some images are beyond cheesy (a gold room, anyone? What is that, Trump’s apartment?).”
That said, for many, the accompanying editorial played much better than the drab outer shell.
Kendall Jenner in Proenza Schouler; Image: Vogue
“That awful background and outfit ruin the cover imo, cause she doesn´t look bad otherwise. The editorial is better and I think that the first and last images would have made better covers,” kokobombon observed.
“This cover feels soooooo… empty. That grey background…it looked horrible on last year’s Beyonce cover and it looks even more horrible now. They rarely use plain backgrounds so why now for the biggest issue of the year??? Unbelievable,” wrote a disbelieving anlabe32, continuing, “The editorial is lovely. Makes me hate the cover even more. What is she wearing? Oh and I HATE Mert&Marcus for US Vogue. They’re not suited for this magazine. Jansson would’ve made this better. That Proenza shot would have made a better cover.”
Kendall Jenner in Maison Margiela “Artisanal” designed by John Galliano dress and waders; Image: Vogue.
Echoing kokobombon’s and anlabe32’s sentiments, MON chimed in, “What a lazy cover. It’s a redo of Beyonce’s September 2015 cover. How disappointing…And that layout! I have been seriously disappointed with their layout for the past few months. The introduction of the Didot font on the cover hasn’t done anything for them. Gigi’s cover looks more September than this one. The energy is missing. She looks beautiful though. And congrats. However, the editorial is better. The shots feel disconnected, but nonetheless, they look good. And wasn’t there any photo from that outdoor setting? Any photo from there would have been perfect for September.”
As always, there were those who took issue with Kendall’s modeling chops (or lack thereof) and especially the implied comparison to Linda Evangelista inherent in Vogue‘s description of Kendall as “modeling’s favorite chameleon.”
“Chameleon? really? hahaha,” laughed MagFan.
Cottonmouth13, too, found Vogue‘s word choice comical: “It’s funny cause I got the same reaction too upon reading that line. I wonder what would Linda Evangelista feel about this. Kendall being a chameleon.”
