EDITOR’S LETTER
Three beauties with uniquely Australian sensibilities and backgrounds – Margot Robbie, Adut Akech and Charlee Fraser – headline this September issue. Margot is captured by photographer Mario Sorrenti and styled by her friend, fashion director Christine Centenera, on four collectable covers that are as diverse in personality as her characters are on screen. Quentin Tarantino, who directed her in the blockbuster film Once Upon a Time in … Hollywood, alongside Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, sat down with the actress for Vogue to discuss her meteoric rise to fame and quiz her about how she got there and where she came from – see page 188. Margot’s mum, Sarie Kessler, highlights her tenacity and individuality, which Sarie says was obvious from the beginning, in a touching conversation with her daughter, from page 200. What’s clear from both interviews is that Margot’s personality is
infectious, and always has been, and her down-to-earth attitude shines through. Her dreams were hatched in sunny Queensland, which might also best describe her natural disposition, but her determination to succeed is a national trait. Yes, there’s also been the odd sprinkling of luck along the way, but then again she hails from the lucky country.
Creative director Jillian Davison envisioned Adut in elfin ears in a dark, romantic fashion fairytale. Up-and-coming Irish photographer Andrew Nuding photographed Adut on one of her regular trips home to visit her family. Adut’s story is well known to readers of Vogue. She is the Sudanese-born supermodel who arrived in Australia at the age of eight with her large family via a Kenyan refugee camp. As the guest editor of our sister publication British Vogue this month, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex included her on the cover as a “force for change”. And as I write, Adut is back in Adelaide in the new home she recently bought for
her family, minding her little sister while her mother is away in Africa. Adut says that she wants to show little girls like her sister that they can do anything. She has already done that, starting at home, but her kindness, generosity and grounded attitude are also rewriting the rule book on how success and fame should be handled and shared.
Charlee Fraser is of Awabakal heritage. She grew up in Newcastle, New South Wales, where she was discovered, before going on to model at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia in Sydney, and then on the runways of New York, Paris and Milan. She wears this season’s potently feminine looks in this issue. In association with her agency IMG and Vogue, Charlee is also driving a nationwide search to find more Indigenous models, so that our pages and those of our sister publications (Charlee has also featured in Vogue in the US, Italy, Japan, Taiwan and Mexico) might become more diverse – and beautiful in the process.
It’s fitting that we celebrate our Australianness this month as we kick off our 60th-birthday celebrations this year – we are the fourth oldest Vogue in the world, launched after the US, British and Paris editions. This milestone is a time to reflect on our rich heritage and the role we have played in documenting and promoting Australian women’s lives.
We are fortunate that the National Portrait Gallery decided to mark this milestone with an exhibition, Women in Vogue: Celebrating 60 Years in Australia, which opens on October 11 in Canberra. The NPG-curated show will display the extraordinarily diverse and successful women who have graced our pages in our past, as they do again this month.
In appreciation of our most dedicated readers in this significant year, we’re also excited to introduce Vogue VIP, a new subscriber-only program that rewards your loyalty each and every month. As a Vogue Australia VIP, you not only get Vogue delivered to your door, you can also enjoy the convenience of the digital edition and gain access to the Vogue VIP benefits program. The new Vogue VIP site features redeemable first-to-market product offers and gifts from our luxury partners, invitations and early access to Vogue events, behind-the-scenes content and much more.
Be quick and join before attending this year’s Vogue American Express Fashion’s Night Out in Melbourne on August 29 or Sydney on September 5, to gain exclusive access to a special Vogue VIP members’ lounge and be gifted a goodie bag full of special offers from our retail partners. This is Amex’s fourth consecutive year supporting FNO and the beginning of a further three-year partnership. American Express card members can once again get $20 back when they spend $50 on their American Express cards, up to three times on the night. American Express also provides a relax-and-recharge space within its American Express lounge pop-up with refreshments and New York-street-themed nibbles.
Enjoy this special edition, watch out for our anniversary issue this December, and see the insert in this issue to learn more about Vogue VIP.