Written by Oscar Holland, CNN
Contributors Jasmine Wright, CNN
Kamala Harris’ forthcoming appearance in American Vogue has sparked criticism for looking casual and “
washed out, “with the vice president-elect’s team blinded by the magazine’s cover choice.
The hotly debated image, showing Harris in a black jacket and Converse sneakers, was not the one she expected on the front cover of the print edition. A source familiar with the discussions said Harris’s team believed she would pose on the cover in a light blue suit against a gold background.
An apparently leaked copy of the publication’s February cover, shot in front of a pink and green background, began circulating online on Sunday. The photo immediately angered social media for looking poorly lit and stylized, while others suggested it “
disrespectful“to the vice-president-elect.
With some Twitter users even wondering if the image was forged, Vogue
confirmed it as genuine – but added to the confusion by revealing a second “digital” cover featuring Harris in a powder blue Michael Kors suit against a gold background. The CNN source said the Harris team had expected this outfit to be used as the main cover photo, with the more casual attire appearing in the magazine. The same source said the Harris team has requested a new cover, although the print version of the magazine went to press in mid-December.
Vogue unveiled a second “digital” cover featuring Harris in a blue suit. Credit: Tyler Mitchell / Vogue
A spokesman for Vogue did not comment on the discussions between the magazine and the vice president-elect’s team, but said in an emailed statement that Vogue “loved the images Tyler Mitchell took and felt it was more informal. image captured by Vice President Harris’ authentic, accessible nature – which we believe is one of the hallmarks of the Biden / Harris administration.
“To respond to the gravity of this moment in history and the role she must play in moving our country forward, we are celebrating both images of her and covers digitally.”
Both photos were taken by Tyler Mitchell, who was famous for being the first black photographer to make an American Vogue cover when he captured Beyoncé for the September 2018 issue of the magazine. Mitchell posted just one of the covers on Instagram – Harris’s in a blue suit. Mitchell did not immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment.
A ‘washed out mess’
To explain the influences behind the cover shoot, Vogue said the apple green and salmon pink background was inspired by the colors of Howard University’s Alpha Kappa Alpha, the “ first historically African-American sorority. ” An accompanying article stated that Mitchell “wanted to honor Harris” college days and the powerful women who make up the ranks of sororities like Alpha Kappa Alpha. ”
The article also said the vice president’s styling choices were “ her own choices ” and that the image “ reflects Harris at her casual best. ”
The cover of Vogue’s February 2021 issue. Credit: Tyler Mitchell / Vogue
But critics said the photos made her skin look “washed out” and out of sync with Vogue’s glamorous aesthetic. Playwright and lawyer Wajahat Ali
described it was a “mess,” adding that Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour “really shouldn’t have black friends and colleagues.”
Not everyone was so disdainful of the casually styled shot. “People are arguing about the photo chosen for VP Harris’ Vogue cover, but here’s what’s important: she looks great, she’s being honored, and the cover is driving Trump and Melania crazy,”
tweeted novelist Paul Rudnick, a clear reference to the outgoing president’s complaint that his wife should not yet appear on the cover of a major fashion magazine as first lady.
Meanwhile, Washington Post chief critic Robin Givhan wrote that while “there is nothing inherently wrong with this photo,” selecting the more casual one for the cover, “Vogue has robbed Harris of her roses.”
A little awe would have served the magazine well in its cover decisions. Nothing about the cover said, ‘Wow. And sometimes that’s all black women want, an admiring and festive ‘wow’ about what they’ve accomplished. “
The debate comes a little over a week before Harris is inaugurated as the first female and first black and South Asian vice president. In an accompanying in-depth profile, published online by Vogue on Sunday, Harris recalls the moment when the election was held and her subsequent victory speech. She also speaks about climate change and protests racial justice.
Related video: Naomi Campbell on diversity in fashion
“I always say this: I might be the first to do a lot of things – make sure I’m not the last,” Harris told journalist Alexis Okeowo. “I thought of my baby cousins, who will only know one world where a woman is vice president of the United States, a woman of color, a black woman, a woman with parents born outside the United States.”
Elsewhere in the interview, she reiterated that Covid-19 will be the Biden-Harris administration’s top priority for the first 100 days.
“The first approach must be to get this pandemic under control,” she says.
