Black Beauty or Black Fetish? 9 Black African Models on the cover of a British Magazine

3 years ago, British supermodel Naomi Campbell blasted Alexandra Shulman, a former editor-in-chief of Vogue U.K., for suggesting that black cover models don’t sell issues, which is why, in her 25 years at the magazine, she- Alexandra only put 12 black models and celebrities on its cover. Naomi has been a fearless champion of diversity in fashion for decades, advocating for more dark-skinned models to be featured in the industry.

Fast forward to 2022 and epic change is certainly taking shape. In what will be touted as momentuous and ground breaking for many years to come, British Vogue released their February 2022 issue starring nine dark skinned African models in a stylish ‘art’ editorial shoot.

Hailing it as a new era in the fashion industry, current British Vogue’s editor-in-chief, Edward Enninful, who identifies as British Ghanaian, said the magazine cover was an important statement of anti-tokenism. “No longer just one or two dark-skinned girls mingled backstage, but a host of top models took a meaningful, substantial and equal place among the most successful women working in fashion today. It means so much to me to see it.”

“These girls,” he continues, “are redefining what it is to be a fashion model.” This, he asserts, is well overdue. “You know, fashion tends to follow waves. We’ve had the Brazilian wave. We had the Dutch wave, the Russian wave, the Eastern European wave… And while, in the last decade, the Black model has come to prominence, I love that we are finally giving more space to African beauty.” Unlike the trends that have gone before, which favoured a certain aesthetic – the perpetually sun-kissed Amazonian curves of the Brazilians, the strong jawlines of the Eastern Europeans – this African wave taps into a variety of aesthetics from across that vast continent.

Shot in London by Rafael Pavarotti towards the end of last year, the models featured are Adut Akech, Amar Akway, Majesty Amare, Akon Changkou, Maty Fall, Janet Jumbo, Abény Nhial, Nyagua Ruea and Anok Yai. They are originally from Senegal, Rwanda, Sudan, Nigeria and Ethiopia.

Adut Akech, one of the world’s leading black supermodels praised the issue saying ‘When I first started modelling internationally, I would literally be the only Black, dark-skinned girl in the show. There were no Sudanese models, no African models. Now, I go to a show and there are girls from my country, girls from Africa who look like me. So yes, there has been a huge change.’

Leading Oscar award winner Lupita Nyong’o loved it, expressing her support in a tweet, ” Now THIS is DARK & LOVELY! YASSS!!!! Bravo.”

However, the magazine cover and photographs have elicited mixed reactions with many, especially from the black community slamming it for bad lighting, bad editing and ‘over darkening the models’.

@ Qew3000

That British vogue cover gives me the ick. It’s very weird when the vogues of the world use blackness as a costume/prop. Those models are beautiful black women but something about the lighting and composition gives me high fetish not fashion

@ DanielLukeEmuna

I find the lighting and tones beautiful. But my personal complaint is that publications and brands are constantly communicating that the deepest darkest hue in complexion represents the truest essence of Blackness or even Africanness. This is clearly a mark of the white gaze.

@ LesegoTlhabi

Look I’m a fan of British Vogue since Mr Enninful became EIC but I’m honestly not sure why this cover is not well-lit & why the models are made to be mannequin-esque & we lose their features & beauty. Vogue as a whole really struggles with lighting & shooting black women but WHY?

@ ulxma

Anyone who follows some of these models knows that their skin was deliberately edited to make it look twice as dark. And the way their faces are buried in their hair. I wonder what the point was.

@ AkauJambo

I am South Sudanese. I have lived here probably longer than these models and I can assure you that there is nobody moving around looking like this. As an artist, I can also assure you that this is not art. This is Black Skin Porn. Black Fetish. Reverse Bleaching

@ onetkwonder

Publications (international) in general LOVE making models darker than they actually are. It’s like they’ve set their own standard for the shade of dark they want to “celebrate” and will literally turn anyone into it

@ infodapoet

Black people do NOT need to be exoticizied. Making white people powdered puff and Blacks matte-black aint High society the European beauty standard can kick rocks in flipflops

@ TracieG_The_PhD

I DEFINITELY got curious about what was happening here when I saw this–like, if it was meant to intentionally darken their skin tones or photograph their shades exactly as they are without trying to “brighten” them for the viewers anti-Black sensibilities.

@ Queenlaakeli

What people don’t understand is platforms like this normalize the fetish instead of appreciating the art and unfortunately set it as the fashion trend worldwide. You’ll find casting agents in Uganda as well looking for dark skinned girls with such tones to simply look trendy.

The cover Photographer Rafael Pavarotti, born in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest in 1993, called it a “celebration of women, of matriarchy and of the beauty of black women”.

Adut Adetch has appeared on many Vogue covers all around the world, more than any of her peers. Here’s a few of these covers she has graced from British, Japan, Deutsche, Italian and Australian Vogues’ in the past.

British Vogue is not only one of the leading fashion/ lifestyle magazines in the world but a trend setter too. In the UK alone, according to research published by Amy Watson from April 2019 to March 2020, Vogue magazine (in print and online) reached nearly 2.7 million people in the United Kingdom, including nearly two million women.

Sponsored