Samantha Harris in Vogue Australia February 2011
Last year when I bought Vogue Australia February there was the hipper than anything Nicole Trunfio on the cover, rocking those twisted, ruched Burberry skirts and a "yeah, what?" facial expression. I was house sitting at time, and I remember sitting back in palatial surrounds - by a pool, actually, if I remember correctly - and soaking up all the new season fashions. I happened to be babysitting, and I went through the magazine with these two 10 year old girls, explaining to them how flat lays worked, and why fashion features front of book was the best part of the whole magazine. I can't get quite as excited about this year's issue with Catherine McNeil on the cover. It smarts of same old, same old, and I'm not going to lie - I'm not a fan of this laid-back hoodie and bikini styling. We may be Australia, but we're not always fresh-from-the-beach thank you very much. In fact, the only image that I can really get excited about is this one. Samantha Harris, aboriginal model and she of the bee-stung lips and incredible beauty, slightly-tousled (and balayaged?) hair, hands thrust in the pockets of a so-simple, so-chic Calvin Klein gown. A shift dress, long and loose and navy blue, with nothing but a couple of darts along the bust and a thin ribbon tie across the middle. Something that you might have made in year 8 dressmaking, perhaps, with cheap calico from Spotlight and a noisy sewing machine. But somehow those wide shoulders, that low-cut sleeve that hits just under the curve of the bust (coincidence? I think not, say what you will about minimalism, but it has sex to burn), those long lengths, those pockets (oh! i love pockets!), seem so modern and so very now. How much more of an impact would this have made as a cover, with nary a coverline in sight except "modern minimalism", nestled amongst the bikini clad Jessica Alba that adorns Harpers Bazaar and the bevvy of celebrities soon to be found on Cosmo and Cleo?
Samantha Harris has had a quiet, long journey to the top of modelling. Sometimes it is easy to forget just how hard she worked to get where she is today - especially when models like Bambi come out of nowhere to score covers and make headlines. Her first cover of Vogue last fashion week was all attention-grabbing in Versace dresses with cut out panels, bright neon yellow lycra and a leg spread pose to rival Sharon Stone. But this one, well, if I was Kirsty Clements, I would have had a little smile at the appropriateness of this as a second cover. The atypical Australian model in a simple, clean, unfussy dress that sings of Australian lifestyle. Catherine McNeil in hoodie, bikini and denim shorts? Clements, you've lost your touch, that's rookie stuff. Harris in Calvin Klein? Now that's an Australian image I'd pay $8.50 for.
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