This archiving session was a very useful exercise in identifying a certain demographic. The magazine of choice was Italian Vogue for 1990.
Silk trimmed dress: Adrienne Landau
Makeup: Clinique
Pages: 158 - 165
The
editorial on Editha Dussler also promotes a sense of aspiration to the target
audience. She is a star model, who made it from the 60’s and is still regarded
as a “Beautiful aristocrat” 30 years on. Women reading this would want to be Editha,
who can still be regarded as attractive in her mature life. This magazine
focuses heavily on beauty and material things by including a lot of adverts for
beauty creams and make up.
Throughout
the editorial, Editha poses in very strong, yet elegant ways. For instance, the
picture of her looking directly into the camera with a stern face and a blazer
creates the idea that she is a strong and independent woman, who has worked for
her fame. Despite some images of her being sexualised, the poses and
expressions she uses enforces individualism and self-awareness. This could be
linked to the third-wave feminists, which was marked at the beginning of the
1990’s. Noticeably there are hardly any men in this issue of Vogue, creating a
strong sense of female importance. It could be thought that the magazine
emphasizes the fact that this is aimed at an independent woman who does not
rely of the income of a spouse.
Photographer:
Alfa castaldi
Pearl
production started in Australia in 1956. In 1990, the value of Australian
cultured pearls rose tenfold from the mid 80’s, therefore this could be an
indication as to why the word “Rich” is in bold capitalized letters. The amount
of pearls in the jewellery would indicate that this advert was aimed at the
affluent female. This is emphasised by the amount of gold used to make the
jewellery. The previous images associated with the advertorial further depict a
fashion conscious, wealthy woman, displayed by leather bag and diamond encrusted
watches and the word “gold”. The advert includes a Louis Vuitton suitcase,
advertising luxury goods to its audience. The UPS is soft sell, which is
implied by the selected words such as
“Charme” and “Luxe”, to entice the target market.
This
magazine could also apply to an aspirational female who wishes to have these
materialist objects. This particular person may come from a different
demographic from a slightly lower class, therefore she strives to become a
woman who can afford all of these things. This may also imply she is could be
working at a lower level, belonging to a C2 or C1 demographic group.
Photographer: Niel Kirk
Coat: Gianfranco Ferré
Fashion
editor: Anna Dello
Russo
Page: 230 -237
The editorials and advertorials in
the December 1990 Vogue Italia targets the affluent woman. This editorial may
mirror the demographic that read this magazine. It depicts a woman wearing fur,
which is regarded as an expensive material for clothing. In addition, she is
seen wearing what seems to be expensive jewellery on her neck, ears and hand.
The highly embroidered and tailored jacket could indicate she is fashion
conscious and can afford such things. The age and dress of the model indicates this
magazine could be aimed at mid 25- 40 as the style is very sophisticated. She
seems to be a lady of leisure, shown in the image of her at the restaurant,
maybe conveying the idea she may not need to work since she is able to dress
expensively. She is seen by herself thought the advertorial, which could depict
she is an independent woman.
The actions against fur peaked in
the 80s to 90s, therefore it is questionable why this model is wearing fur. It
has been concluded that Italy had, strict welfare conditions for fur
farming which were adopted in March 2001. This meant that the fur was
acceptable in Italy past the 90’s, whilst other countries had banned fur farms
at this time.
