Vogue Italia publishes white blank cover to show support for COVID-19 frontliners

For the first time since it was launched over a hundred years ago, fashion magazine Vogue Italia has published a blank white cover to show support for those battling at the front lines of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
In the announcement released on its Instagram account, the magazine’s editor-in-chief (EIC) Emanuele Farneti said the decision to put on hold their initial choice for the cover—which involved men’s magazine L’Uomo Vogue in a twin project—and pursue the blank one is to signify the “color of the uniforms worn by those who put their own lives on the line to save ours.”
The EIC added that the magazine’s noblest tradition is to not look the other way, and that to speak of anything else while people are dying, doctors and nurses are risking their lives, and the world is changing forever is not in its DNA.
“The decision to print a completely white cover for the first time in our history is not because there was any lack of images—quite the opposite. We chose it because white signifies many things at the same time. White is first of all respect. White is rebirth, the light after darkness, the sum of all colours. White is the colour of the uniforms worn by those who put their own lives on the line to save ours,” she said.
Farneti also said that white represents space and time to think, as well as to stay silent as other fill up this space with ideas, thoughts, stories, lines of verse, music and care for others.
She furthered that white is a blank sheet waiting to be written, and not one that signifies surrender—especially not at this crisis.

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The Vogue Italia April Issue will be out next Friday 10th. ??? “In its long history stretching back over a hundred years, Vogue has come through wars, crises, acts of terrorism. Its noblest tradition is never to look the other way. Just under two weeks ago, we were about to print an issue that we had been planning for some time, and which also involved L’Uomo Vogue in a twin project. But to speak of anything else – while people are dying, doctors and nurses are risking their lives and the world is changing forever – is not the DNA of Vogue Italia. Accordingly, we shelved our project and started from scratch. The decision to print a completely white cover for the first time in our history is not because there was any lack of images – quite the opposite. We chose it because white signifies many things at the same time. ??? White is first of all respect. White is rebirth, the light after darkness, the sum of all colours. White is the colour of the uniforms worn by those who put their own lives on the line to save ours. It represents space and time to think, as well as to stay silent. White is for those who are filling this empty time and space with ideas, thoughts, stories, lines of verse, music and care for others. White recalls when, after the crisis of 1929, this immaculate colour was adopted for clothes as an expression of purity in the present, and of hope in the future. Above all: white is not surrender, but a blank sheet waiting to be written, the title page of a new story that is about to begin.” #EmanueleFarneti @EFarneti #imagine #FarAwaySoClose #WhiteCanvas — Read the full Editor’s letter via link in bio. Full credits: Editor in chief @Efarneti Creative director @FerdinandoVerderi

A post shared by Vogue Italia (@vogueitalia) on Apr 7, 2020 at 10:00am PDT

Italy is one of the countries with the highest number of COVID-19 cases and death tolls worldwide, with 156,363 confirmed cases and 19,899 fatalities.