Cutting edge

This has to be one of the very best covers Australian Vogue has ever done ­– at least as long as I have been reading it.

Back when I bought it I was already at art school, but it didn’t take a graphic design student’s eye to see that the sharp graphics and literally cutting-edge composition made a striking cover. A cover that must have been influenced by iconic magazines of this era, such as the Face; a cover that had visual appeal and would guarantee hands would reach for it on the newsstand.

I particularly like the typography, the way in which it fills the negative space, and interacts with the model’s silhouette. You would never see Australian Vogue cutting a face in half today!

It is amusing to note however that the cover does not at all fulfill its promise with the editorial layouts inside.

Still, I’ve kept my original copy on my shelf for 18 years on the strength of it.

Australian Vogue, April 1990. Photograph: Martyn Thompson.