blowing the cover

It's been said the simplest things are always best, and it just so happens that Solange Knowles's June 2013 cover for Complex magazine is among the simplest, most beautiful covers we've seen this month. On it, Knowles is seen in profile looking directly up at the magazine's logo in front of a cool blue background.

But that's not the only one of next month's covers that's pure beauty. Kate Upton landed her first cover of Vogue, and Kerry Washington's Elle cover is the first time the actress has fronted a major American fashion magazine.

There are some other stunners, including all eight covers for the independent fashion magazine Ponystep, Gwyneth Paltrow for Glamour UK, Karlie Kloss for Vogue Japan, and Nicolas Ghesquiere and Charlotte Gainsbourg for 032c, in which the designer discusses life after Balenciaga.

A look at those covers and more, here in the gallery.

If April showers bring May flowers as pretty as these magazine covers, let the rain fall. So far, the next crop of glossy fashion magazine fronts don't disappoint: Carey Mulligan channels Daisy Buchanan on the May cover of Vogue, and Beyoncé makes a glittery first appearance on the cover of Vogue UK. The singer, currently on her Mrs. Carter Show tour, also looks stunning on the cover of Vogue India.

Of course the singer isn't the only living legend on one of next month's glossy covers. Lauren Hutton takes a graceful fall for Harper's Bazaar España, and John Malkovich makes an appearance for Arena Homme +. But supermodels more than held their own. A look at Naomi Campbell for Vogue Brazil, Georgia May Jagger for Dazed and Confused Korea, Karen Elson for Harper's Bazaar UK, and the rest of the best covers from May, here in the gallery.

Who says general-interest publications should have all the fun? The American Society of Magazine Editors on Monday announced the finalists for its 2013 National Magazine Awards, and the publishing industry's women's fashion titles more than held their own.

W, for example, is nominated twice: the magazine got a nod for the photography award and is also a finalist for the feature photography award, for Steven Klein's story "Good Kate, Bad Kate" in the March 2012 issue.

Vogue and Harper's Bazaar are both finalists for the general excellence award for service and fashion magazines, and Bullett is a finalist for the design award.

A look at who else in fashion made the cut here in the gallery — and see all the finalists here.

Michelle Obama isn't the only lady with bangs and a Vogue cover this month: Tina Turner graces the glossy's German version, and Edie Campbell the British edition.

After a strong showing last month, Louis Vuitton's checkers make a few appearances for April as well — this time in the form of a long-sleeved crop top. Rihanna wears one with a long skirt for Elle UK, while January Jones pairs hers with an itsy-bitsy miniskirt for British Glamour. Despite the fact that some of her past covers haven't performed well, Taylor Swift graces two major magazines this month: Vanity Fair and InStyle UK. She wears wispy pastel outfits on both.

Movie stars and magazine covers go hand in hand, but according to new numbers from the Alliance For Audited Media, some of the best newsstand sale numbers for 2012 belong to musicians and supermodels.

For example, Lady Gaga's September cover of Vogue was the title's best-selling issue of 2012. Gwen Stefani was Harper's Bazaar's best-seller in September, and Brooke Shield's cover of Architectural Digest was also a hit on the newsstand.

At the low end, Kim Kardashian and her sisters Kourtney and Khloé failed to deliver high sales for Glamour, and Vogue's Olympic-themed June cover — starring athletes Hope Solo, Ryan Lochte, and Serena Williams — was the title's worst-selling issue of the year.

A look at whose covers sold well — and whose didn't — here in the gallery.

The big Spring issues may have been dominating newsstands for the last few weeks, but with award season and fashion month dominating the news, it's understandable that some of them may have gone unnoticed. No worries; we've gathered them all right here.

Carine Roitfeld counts her private ballet lessons as the inspiration for the dance-themed second issue of her magazine, CR Fashion Book.

"I'm obsessed with the body of the ballet dancer, obsessed with the music and obsessed with the Russian tradition in ballet," Roitfeld told WWD. "When you are a dancer, you don't get money. You do it because you love it. It's so pure and beautiful — the freedom, the movement, the gestures."

It follows that the pictures in the magazine would be beautiful, too. Gus Van Sant captured dancer Sergei Polunin in the middle of a leap for one of the issue's covers; for the other, he shot a stiletto pointe shoe created by artist Brigitte Niedermair. The issue includes Rick Owens's first ever editorial, a photo story by Bruce Weber, and Gisele Bündchen's interview with model Kiara Kabukuru. Photographer Maurizi Bavutti captured a surreal vision of what dancers look like backstage, and Kacper Kasprzyk depicted a dancer's life and training by photographing David Hallberg.

The second issue of CR Fashion Book will be on European shelves Feb. 21 and will debut stateside Feb. 28. A sneak peek here in the gallery.

Photo courtesy of CR Fashion Book

Is anyone having a better year than Kate Moss? Just a few days into the second month of 2013 comes the news that the supermodel will grace four covers of i-D Magazine's Alphabetical issue, celebrating 20 years of working with the title.

With this issue, Moss adds four portraits taken by Daniele Duella and Iango Henzi to her vast portfolio of covers. She first appeared in i-D in 1993 and now has been on the cover of the magazine 13 times. But no one could have foretold that during her first cover shoot. Moss, then just 19 years old, wore an oversize sweatshirt, unbrushed hair, and not a trace of makeup. "Little did we know that this impish imperfect beauty would end up an international superstar and on more i-D covers than any other," said the magazine's founder, Terry Jones.

And despite her long and prolific career, Moss shows no signs of slowing down. She recently celebrated her 39th birthday, the publication of a book of her work, and is currently being filmed for a documentary about her life. We wonder if this cover shoot will end up in the film?

Photo courtesy of i-D Magazine.

There's a definite sense of romance in some of the February magazine covers that have been released so far. Love's black and white shots of Cara Delevingne and Edie Campbell, for example, are used for the magazine's "Clean Issue," while Vanity Fair's picture of Jennifer Lawrence biting a daisy is underpinned by a declaration that the actress is the "world's most desirable woman."

That celebration of youth and beauty will undoubtedly continue as stars like Lawrence and Anne Hathaway (who covers February's issue of Harper's Bazaar UK) head down the many red carpets of awards season. But don't count out the models: Constance Jablonski is adorned with purple and white flowers on the cover of Vogue China, and Anja Rubik's clean and simple cover of Elle UK is no less striking.

If the holidays really are the most wonderful time of the year, then by all logic December's magazine covers should offer some of the best photographs of 2012. So far, this month's crop of glossy imagery isn't disappointing: Marion Cotillard looks stunning swaddled in red silk on the cover of Harper's Bazaar UK, while Taylor Swift makes refreshingly monochromatic appearances on the covers of Elle Canada and American Bazaar. But let's not forget the models — Candice Swanepoel looks hauntingly beautiful on the cover of 10 Magazine, and Kate Moss's enduring beauty graces the covers of Elle Japan and Vanity Fair.


A look at the December covers we've seen so far, here in the gallery.