Vogue Italia - All Black Issue

All Black Issue

The July 2008 issue featured only black models, photographed by Steven Meisel, and the articles pertained to black women in the arts and entertainment. The magazine claimed to showcase black models in response to anger caused by the disinclination of fashion magazines to display black models on their covers. Fashion industry insiders claim black models are featured less often because they are unable to sell. This statement, along with the formation of a protest group in New York that challenges racism in the industry, convinced Italian Vogue's editor, Franca Sozzani to create this issue. The issue included established supermodels like Vivien Tan, Yasmin Warsame, Alek Wek, Rachel D. Vancelette, Veronica Webb, Noemie Lenoir, Iman, Liya Kebede, Tyra Banks and Naomi Campbell, as well as contemporary models, including Jourdan Dunn, Chanel Iman, Arlenis Sosa, and Sessilee Lopez. This specific issue also brought in Toccara Jones, the first black plus-sized model to be in the pages of the high fashion magazine. Instead of the issue not selling, it became the highest selling issue of Italian Vogue ever, and had run out of print twice, which marked the first time in Condé Nast history that the magazine reprinted an issue to satisfy demand. The reprinted copies had the tag lines: "Most Wanted Issue Ever" and "First Reprint" banded across the front.

However, even though the advertising pages went up 30 percent, there was a "glaring lack of black models" in them. Meisel said: "I've asked my advertising clients so many times, 'Can we use a black girl?' They say no. Advertisers say black models don't sell."