Released today, Vogue Italia’s April Issue is a white front cover. As I was scrolling through Instagram, I saw the announcement and even for someone who isn’t necessarily an avid reader of Vogue, I smiled.
It is a given that those working in the news are constantly being expected to report on COVID 19 because this is what the public needs to hear and read about. By default, they fulfill a civil service requirement somehow. But where does this leave other media outlets, in particular the publications who do not necessarily deal with the news? A huge part of ‘making it’ is moving with the times and that not only entails becoming digital but also taking into consideration what the world is going through: the COVID 19 crisis.
The Color White
According to Vogue Italia’s announcement, the magazine has survived during wars, crises and acts of terrorism but “its noblest tradition is never to look the other way.” Italy is one of the hardest hit countries when it comes to COVID 19 with over 140,000 cases and about 18,000 deaths, as per Worldometer.
While the country tries to curb the numbers and flatten the curve, citizens try to find new ways to stay positive such as singing on the balconies and helping the elderly with grocery shopping. In Italy, and across the world, now is the time to try and find hope.
“The decision to print a completely white cover for the first time in our history is not because there was any lack of images – quite the opposite. We chose it because white signifies many things at the same time,” wrote Vogue Italia’s Editor-in-Chief, Emanuele Farneti.
Farneti explained that the color white means many things. And while people are dying because of COVID 19 and while nurses and doctors are risking their lives, Vogue Italia changed its front cover plans last minute. For the record, that’s no easy task for any magazine.
For Vogue’s front cover, white means respect, rebirth, light after darkness and the sum of all colors. It is also “the colour of the uniforms worn by those who put their own lives on the line to save ours.”
More often than not, when tragedy comes to an end (which it eventually will), the world of art, fashion and design changes. Many users on social media speak about how the world post-COVID 19 will look. And it will surely be different in terms of the economy and jobs.
Hence, the white front cover that also represents how people are using this space and time to think of ideas, music, stories – all while being silent. “White is not surrender, but a blank sheet waiting to be written, the title page of a new story that is about to begin,” wrote Farneti.
The Magazine & Publishing Industry
Magazines on a newsstand
There is not much to say about how the world of publishing and magazines is forced into digital. While some magazines accept it with open arms and others struggle to adapt, COVID 19 was a wake up call for this industry.
According to an article titled “US Newspapers Face ‘Extinction-Level’ Crisis as COVID-19 Hits Hard” in The Guardian, there is both a decrease in advertising and a decrease in wanting to hold actual printed paper.
I genuinely adore printed magazines because it gives off a different vibe, but that’s not enough of a reason to maintain sales. Those publishing on issues that the public does not want to hear about right now are probably the hardest hit, and hence, Vogue Italia’s front cover is attention grabbing even though this is not necessarily its scope of coverage.
As Vogue Italia did, it’s time to shelve other projects and stand with the public.
