The Vogue Factor
I have been blessed with many opportunities since moving to Sydney in January '15, from meeting the Editor of Vogue Australia to landing my first job in a Fashion Head Office and interning with Marie Claire and Cosmopolitan.
Last night I was fortunate enough to cross the threshold of yet another magazine that I have always idolised - Vogue!
Before I moved to Sydney, my 18-year-old dream was to work as a Fashion Journalist for Vogue Australia, I had a monthly subscription and would read the magazine about 7 times before stacking it on my shelf to join the others. On my days off, I would sit in my room and cut out all the images and articles that jumped out at me and glue them into A4 sketch books that I even packed up and brought with me to Sydney. I would flip through these nine (yes, nine) books whenever I was working on an assignment for Fashion College and would feel inspired by every page.
We met with the Bookings Editor of Vogue Australia (who actually once had my job at my current place of work which is very cool) and she explained that she is the one responsible for putting everyone in the same area of the world for a photo shoot or interview, also organising the budgets and making sure the magazine isn't overspending. She explained that working at Vogue is almost like a lifestyle choice, because Australia is so far away, the team sometimes set alarms for 1am or 3am in the morning to answer calls and emails from people on the other side of the world, it also includes checking emails over the weekend and rarely taking a holiday as no time is ever a good time.
We then met The Junior Fashion Editor who was one of the most inspiring and passionate people I've ever met in the industry! She explained the heritage of Vogue and their pacts to never shoot real fur and only shoot models that are over the age of 16 and in good health (no eating disorders etc.). She also explained how the fashion industry had finally caught up with the rest of the world by loudly supporting and celebrating diversity.
When she was younger she wanted to be a filmmaker and would wear really wacky clothes. One night, she was out at a club wearing a full-length veil and someone stood on it. She yelled, “EXCUSE ME!” and ripped it out for under a woman’s feet. The woman turned out to be a free lance Fashion Editor and passed on her business card and the rest is history.
Her passion lies particularly with creating a story when she shoots. When you are styling a photoshoot, not only will you consider the clothes, you must also consider the lighting, location, model, photographer and the music.
We heard a story about a time when the Vogue team were shooting a Son and his Mother who had had 3 different types of cancer consecutively and she was one of the first brave patients to undertake DNA testing that could predict cancer cells in their children. It turned out her Son had a higher chance than his other 2 siblings of contracting cancer later in life and they were telling their story. While the teams were shooting, the mother requested to play Suzanne by Leonard Cohen and there was not a dry eye in the room. You want to people to feel the same looking at your photos as they feel listening to certain music, incredibly moved.
She also explained how working for Vogue is like a lifestyle, it may seem glamorous but when you’re sitting in your hotel room in Paris all alone after a grueling day and its 3am and your friend’s birthday and your news feed is blowing up, it’s shit. Then there is the side that allows you to experience the world like no one else will, they have been to all the royal palaces around the world and in the slums of Rio bartering over a dress, they have had dinner with Nicole Kidman watching the sunset over Uluru and shot Kim Kardashian in on a secluded beach in Jervis Bay.
We finished the visit with a tour of the Fashion Cupboard led by Vogue’s own Fashion Assistant. The cupboard was full of clothes every colour of the rainbow and ranged from knits to sequins to feathers. In the cupboard, the Fashion Assistant told us about how she got to where she is today, she had interned at Vogue while at Uni and then left to be a freelance Styling Assistant for a wide range of Stylists before being recommended for the position at Vogue by a staff member who had been very impressed with her when she had been interning.
When I asked the Junior Fashion Editor what she thinks makes an intern stand out, she replied - Hardworking with a great attitude. We also need support! When it’s late at night and we’re shooting the next day, it’s such a support to look across the room and see that one intern who is still hanging around to help!
I was sent on my way with a copy of the magazine and an indescribable amount of inspiration – Thank you Vogue!
