Wild Irish Rose
Vogue US September 2013
Daria Werbowy and Adam Driver by Annie Leibovitz
I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say everyone was expecting those Mert and Marcus candids from Venice to finally come to fruition in this issue. After all, they were shot way back in April and if my industry timing is correct then they should have been in print by now. There's also the possibility that the entire editorial could have been scrapped. It's happened before (Raquel Zimmermann's editorial in the September 2007 issue of Vogue) and with the magazine's mammoth budget its not entirely impossible. Although it would be such a shame considering how beautiful the candids were ... I still have hopes for the October issue though!
On to the editorial we actually get to see! Annie Leibovitz takes us to the rugged terrains of Ireland with the unexpected coupling of Daria and Adam Driver. I think this editorial might be the result of those candids of Grace in Ireland. I'm a sucker for the Vogue 'couple editorial' and a photoshoot in Ireland has always been on my wishlist for Daria. I'm sure these will look even more beautiful in print as most of Leibovitz's work does.
I don't have too much to say other than I really do love this shoot and the fact that Daria is shown in minimal makeup, true to her 29 years. That Vogue is still loyal to models reaching their thirties, and presents them in their actual light, is refreshing in such an ephemeral industry.
source : fashionscansremastered.com
It's just Ireland, not Southern Ireland. Republic of Ireland is also acceptable.
ReplyDeleteJust meant it geographically hence the lower-case 'southern' but I will change it!
DeleteThink by 'southern' they mean Kerry...
ReplyDeleteNo, actually it is southern Ireland. The photos were taken in Kerry, the most southerly county in Ireland.She's not trying to be political just geographical.
ReplyDeleteKerry is not the most southerly county in Ireland. Check your map and get down off your high horse
DeleteYes! Thanks!
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ReplyDeleteMy apologies everyone it was definitely meant as a geographical term, nothing else! I'm sorry if I offended anyone but I can change it to just Ireland!
ReplyDeleteHaha, Everyone getting all mad over how south Kerry actually is, yer gas altogether! Kerry is in the south of Ireland, south west to be exact. Someone having a tizzy over it being wrongly mentioned as the most southernly county....sure what harm! The most southern tip of Ireland is located in Mizen Head off the coast of West Cork and quite close to the boarder with County Kerry, you could drive from West Cork around the ring of Kerry in less than a day so most people, even the good folk from Cork like myself are prone to thinking Kerry is the most southerly. As for the editorial, I should be more annoyed with the old Irish stereotypes it ensues.....the donkey, the thatched cottage etc but I actually love it. Ryans Daughter was filmed in Kerry and I think that has to be part of the inspiration for the shoot, wild terrain, wild nights and untamed beauty. Kerry is probably one of the most beautiful places I've ever had the pleasure of seeing and I'm glad I get there every few weeks. I'm even more thrilled that Vogue have acknowledged the sickeningly stunning country I call home....If you ever get the pleasure of seeing it in the flesh, you'll understand what I mean! xx
ReplyDeleteI was wondering where the influx of Irish readers came from but now I've realized that this site was linked to by Broadsheet haha! In any case welcome everyone, it was great to read all of your opinions!
DeleteIreland is on my list of places to visit after I finish my undergrad. It reminds me of back home (not Canada), with the rugged wild terrain ... If you have recommendations of places I have to visit please let me know!
I've lived in the Irish countryside for forty years and I have never seen anyone riding a donkey or knew anyone who lived in a thatched house let alone a hut like above. This portrait of Ireland is deeply offensive and of course insanely inaccurate. It's an image that is petrified in the 1840's, bearing no resemblance to the real Ireland, a highly developed industrial society whose citizens enjoy better education and life expectancy than Americans. Also, the models don't look Irish, the woman is frightfully masculine and the man looks Iberian.
ReplyDeleteOffensive? Cliched maybe, but offensive? I've seen fashion editorials a LOT more offensive toward Native cultures than this.
DeleteAs an Irish person born and bred in Ireland, I have seen many a child riding a donkey, and people who live in thatched houses. And this portrait of Ireland is romanticized, gorgeous, and a very flattering way to portray the clothes, the models and the landscape. I'm sorry to didn't get to experience this aspect of Irish life in your forty years here, you missed out. (The models do look Irish in that they're only gorgeous).
DeleteWell of course they don't look Irish, Daria is Ukrainian and Adam American (although I've always though he looked Mongolian with those strong features)! It's interesting that you call Daria masculine because she is one of the few top models that shies away from an overly sexual or feminine persona, at least in her recent works. She also has a house in West Cork and an Irish boyfriend so I guess she has a little Irish in her haha?
DeleteAlthough I completely understand how you feel that the stereotypes in this editorial are offensive. I would probably raise an eyebrow if they did an editorial in Canada because I'm sure there would be an igloo or maple syrup somehow thrown in there ... but I think as anonymous replied above, this editorial is meant as a completely romanticized image of Ireland.
I believe people know that Ireland is not in fact like the above pictures with donkeys and goats roaming everywhere (save for a few places). Vogue has never been known for its social commentary - this editorial is just clothes against a beautiful backdrop and not much more. If anything I believe people are now more aware of how beautiful Ireland is!
I would have included my reservations about the cliches in my post above but by now I have grown accustomed to the formula of Vogue's location shoots. I guess this doesn't make the cliches any less annoying but I think this editorial should be taken lightly - after all much of the fashion world is frivolous and out of touch.
Also if you guys would like to see some pictures of Daria's Ireland check out her Instagram page http://instagram.com/dotwillow. I think you'll love them!
ReplyDeleteI think when they say Southern Ireland they are just making clear they are talking about the Republic of Ireland rather than Northern Ireland - two different countries.
ReplyDeleteThe pictures show Annie Leibovitz's skill as a photographer, and I think the locations are well chosen. For much of the year the Irish weather is cool and wet with overcast sky, something that comes across in these pictures, and are different from the more usual sunny, warm locations often used for fashion photography.
However, as you say above, Vogue's aim is undoubtedly to show the clothes rather than the background. Personally I think the pictures do that very well. I like them!
Thanks for sharing. Make sense, great tips and really informative! Thanks for sharing.
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