Gigi Hadid wears veil on Vogue Arabia’s debut cover
In a reaction the American style publication probably didn’t foresee, Hadid’s garb didn’t sit well with some of the Twitterati, who slammed it for culture appropriation
March 04, 2017
In a surprising twist, Vogue Arabia – which has just landed in the Middle Eastern region for their debut – revealed Gigi Hadid as the face for their first-ever issue (March 2017), wherein she is featured sporting a veil with an eyehole.
The photoshoot, shot by Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin of Inezandvinoodh and styled by Brandon Maxwell, depicts the supermodel wearing a sequined headscarf with intricate handiwork, supported by her bare shoulders.
Another shot shows her flaunting a magenta veil with splashes of hot purple, accompanied by gold-and-purple eyeshadow and glossy pink lipstick.
Hadid said in the caption on her Instagram post, “Being half-Palestinian, it means the world to me to be on the first-ever cover(s) of Vogue Arabia.” She added that she hopes the fashion space continue “to accept, celebrate, and incorporate all people & customs.”
(Image courtesy: Vogue website)
However, in a reaction that the American style publication probably didn’t foresee, Hadid’s garb didn’t sit well with some of the Twitterati, who slammed the magazine for culture appropriation. Numerous people claimed that the model is using the hijab as art, whereas there are other women who cover their heads but are labelled as oppressed by the world.
In response, a lot of people came to the defence of Hadid, who has Palestinian roots and a Muslim father. They explained how it is completely okay for her to bring back something from her origins, and that calling it appropriation is uncalled for.
Vogue Arabia editor-in-chief Deena Aljuhani Abdulaziz believes that Hadid is the best choice to champion the magazine’s first issue, titled ‘Reorienting Perceptions’, as she “defines tomorrow’s entrepreneurial and dynamic generation.”
The head editor added that the supermodel “communicates a thousand words to a region that’s been waiting far too long for its Vogue voice to speak.”
We think that Hadid’s selection certainly goes in line with the publication’s theme to reorient perceptions.
