Last Updated on January 30, 2013
They announced this morning that Carine Roitfeld has resigned from Vogue Paris after 10 years. Some people are hysterical, as if she's died and will never work in fashion again, others are excited because they expect the new Editor-in-Chief to kick Vogue Paris' proverbial lack of diversity (same photographers, same models, same brands ...) out of the door.
I was pretty shocked by the news myself. After all, Carine Roitfeld was probably the most iconic Vogue editrix after Anna Wintour. She was Vogue Paris and I'm not being overly dramatic if I say her resigning means the end of an era.
The new Editor-in-Chief will be announced in a couple of weeks (rumor has it it'll be Virginie Mouzat, current Fashion Director of Le Figaro). To properly mourn Carine's big exit, here's one of my favorite Vogue Paris editorials shot during her reign. I think it's the quintessential Carine.
Vogue Paris September 2003
Le Grand Jeu
Photographer: Mario Testino
Fashion Editor: Carine Roitfeld
Model: Carolyn Murphy
Photos from The Fashion Spot.
I'm not a fashion expert, but i really hate the fact that one person has such power. Like Anna and Carine do.
I always had a feeling that fashion is some kind of a nazi regime: one person says what to do and all designers, fashion magazines and us, little people fallow them. I think it's absurd that people like Anna or Carine stay editors at a magazine with such influence, for such a long period of time. Some designers don't even stand a chance if they're not approved by some of the people in fashion.
Lately I've been thinking about fashion as politics. The leading few tell the rest of the world what to dress, because lets face it, even the cheaper brands have the same collections without the name of the designer and that's the main difference, so we are all wearing pretty much the same things.
I think that we are parading in circles of 50', 60', 70', 80' 90' and so one, because the old guard has said it all.
It's time for young and fresh ideas and new, younger people that are gonna bring some fresh air inside.
So I say hello to changes.
... but then again, Anna Wintour and Carine Roitfeld worked REALLY hard to get to the point where they have a lot of power. So why not? It's well-deserved, not some instant recognition without a plausible background.
You don't have to follow anyone - you're smart enough to think for yourself. Only truly little people blindly follow the media/whatever, and those are the people who don't want to have (and aren't mentally capable of having) opinions anyway. They want someone else to think instead of them and then adopt their opinion.
Apart from that, collections are very different each season. Some of them do trends, some of them do their own story, the best do both. I believe there will always be something you'll be able to connect with, no matter what the state of the industry is like at that moment.
Some people say that fashion is done, that everything has already been invented, but I don't think we've reached the end yet. For instance, the Alexander McQueen armadillo shoes and Nina Ricci platforms last year completely redefined the shape of the shoe. To my knowledge, that was something new.
With Carine Roitfeld leaving, I don't believe a lot is going to change at Vogue Paris, simply because editors have bosses too. Meaning not everything she did as Editor-in-Chief was necessarily her own decision. I'd even bet it wasn't her choice to leave.
I definitely agree with you, it's time for fresh and new ideas and people and I think it will happen in the future, in a couple of years.
P.S. There probably isn't a single designer who made it without having been approved by someone from the industry.
P.S. 2 Thank you for your very thoughtful comment :)
I agree about the choice of leaving with you. There have been attempts like that with Anna, but I think she's still to powerful.
I also have to agree with the first part, that they deserve this, because of working hard for it, but then again, the younger population is also working hard, and can't get to the top because of people hanging on to their powerful places for to long. It's the same with politics really. Thank god majors can only run twice. We need changes, people with different ideas.
And of course, I also agree we each make our own choices. But even people that say that are not affected by fashion industry, that they don't dress fashionably are not interily correct. Because when we go to the stores to buy the wardrobe, and even if we don't want to buy fashion, we buy it, if we don't know what's fashionable at the moment. And if not else the colors in the boutiques are fashionable.
And before I loose myself :) thank you. It's refreshing to talk about fashion with someone who isn't just pretending to now a lot.
I agree that young, creative people not getting work because of the "gatekeepers" you describe is a huge problem; like I said in the previous comment, I think this will change in a couple of years though (along with a lot of other things unrelated to fashion). I'm really looking forward to that moment. :)
And thank you - pleasure talking to you too! By all means, if there's something else you'd like to talk about, shoot me an email anytime.
Agree, also looking forward to changes, and new era.
I forgot to mention it earlier: I think Camilla Skovgaard has some great ideas too. And a bit more wearable than McQueen and Ricci's (although: don't knock it till you try it :).
Don't mind if I do :) (in Slovene, I think my English is a bit rusty :)
It will be exciting to see what comes next. The thing I liked and didn't like about Paris Vogue is that they tend to use the same models over and over. Good because Isabeli Fontata, not so good because tired of seeing Lara Stone naked ALL.THE.TIME. US Vogue could do with a revamp too. How many times can they shoot Natalia V. frolicking in a forest editorial?
-ps. that de grisogono necklace is STUNNING. I can only dream...
as I wrote on another blog, I really doubt I could care less, but that's just me. =)