IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MIX
We put our summer issue together in one of the most turbulent times our country has ever experienced. The COVID-19 pandemic forced us to work remotely from home (Zoom meeting anyone?) and the horrific death of George Floyd by a policeman and the Black Lives Matter movement has us re-examining systematic racism on every level. Diversity and inclusion have always mattered to L’Officiel and we are thrilled to partner with our friends at the CFDA to include free ads from young Black designers we love. The fashion industry still struggles with the issue of diversity and model/ activist Mamé spoke to writer Jack Irvin about how she is implementing change by creating the Black Beauty Roster, a database of hairstylists and makeup artists with the skills to work on models of color. Mamé also published an open letter to the fashion industry, calling on brands, agents, photographers and casting directors to hire more Black people in all areas of modeling and make sure they receive equitable treatment.
Every issue of L’Officiel is a diverse mix of talent. Photographer Steven Taylor shot one of our cover stars, the rapper Aminé, at his house in Los Angeles and Dudi Hasson photographed Shira Haas in Tel Aviv. Casting Haas, the incredibly talented star of the Netflix limited series “Unorthodox” happened in true quarantine style. I posted how blown away I was by Hass’ performance on Instagram and the star DMed me a thank you note. That led to more DMs and soon Haas was being shot head-to-toe in Chanel. Thank you Instagram!
In addition to features with fabulous fashion on starlets like Lucy Boynton and Eliza Scanlen and singer Ricky Martin (who cut two new albums while in lockdown), contributor Ty Gaskins put together an arresting portfolio of images shot by Black photographers on the frontlines of the Black Lives Matter protests. As photographer Mark Clennon says: “Currently, Black photographers, businesses, organizations, and entrepreneurs are being thrust into the spotlight, which is a good thing, but this can’t just be a moment – it is much deeper than that. I am a
Black photographer and my skills, as well of the talents of my brothers and sisters, should be consistently recognized, requested, and represented, not only during a time of turmoil.”
We could not agree more. -