STUFF OF DREAMS
Unconventional times calls for resourcefulness. If not for the pandemic, we would be in New York City, steaming clothes and mapping out our shoot locations inside a hotel room. But with the borders still closed, all we could see were the screens of our laptops emitting signals from sunny New York to the four corners of our rooms, midnight Philippine time. Technology is lovely and all, but anyone who has ever attended a Zoom party will know that there’s still a disconnect, a gap that cannot be bridged by 1s and 0s.
We pinned our wildest hopes and dreams in our November 2020 issue, so who better to represent it than someone who has already achieved hers? Filipina top model Hannah Locsin is now living her fashion fantasy in the style capitals of the world.
The time difference was a great challenge, especially when it came to coordination, but it was a matter of passion. Both the Manila and NYC teams kept pushing on. While Danilo Hess and company traipsed in New York’s fall weather, shooting Hannah in the latest Gucci, the Manila team nursed coffees, following the shoot remotely.
After the shoot, artist Lea Valenzuela and Associate Creative Director Jann Pascua took over, painting over the iconic skylines and apartment facades to give them a look that Dali and Magritte would approve of.
The aim of this cover is to show longing for better times, looking deep within ourselves and reaching out for the best we have to offer. It's a story of adversity, of flight or fight - should you stay or should you go.
It’s your choice.