The Face (magazine)

The Face (magazine) was a British monthly magazine founded in 1980 that mixed fashion, music, film, photography and youth culture. Launched in United Kingdom by figures associated with Smash Hits and New Musical Express, it became influential across London, Manchester, New York City, Paris and Tokyo. The magazine's aesthetic combined elements of post-punk, new wave, hip hop and house music while showcasing photographers, designers and artists linked to Martin Parr, Corinne Day, Juergen Teller and Nick Knight.

History

The magazine was launched in 1980 by Nick Logan, former editor of Melody Maker and Smash Hits, with an editorial team that included contributors from NME, The Face's early issues documented scenes around Soho, Notting Hill, Camden, Haçienda-era Manchester and the burgeoning New Romantics movement. In the 1980s it covered artists such as David Bowie, Grace Jones, Boy George, Kate Bush and Siouxsie Sioux while charting fashions by Vivienne Westwood, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Helmut Lang and Yohji Yamamoto. The 1990s saw coverage of Madonna, Nirvana, Tricky, Massive Attack and The Prodigy alongside profiles of filmmakers like Pedro Almodóvar, Spike Lee, Wes Anderson and Kathryn Bigelow. Ownership changes involved media groups such as EMAP and later private equity linked to publications including GQ and Elle; the title ceased monthly print in 2004 before later revivals in the 2010s that referenced archives featuring figures such as Sting, Sade, Bjork and Damon Albarn.

Editorial Content and Style

Editorial direction emphasized visual experiments inspired by photographers Herb Ritts, Mario Testino, Anton Corbijn and Guy Bourdin while using typography influenced by Neville Brody and graphic studios associated with Tom Hingston and Peter Saville. Coverage combined interviews with musicians like Prince, Kylie Minogue, Sade Adu, Miles Davis and Dr. Dre with fashion shoots showcasing designers Alexander McQueen, Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Marc Jacobs and Raf Simons. The tone merged cultural reportage found in The Guardian and The Observer arts pages with features akin to Rolling Stone and Vogue profiles, positioning the magazine at intersections frequented by readers of i-D and Dazed. Regular sections investigated nightlife at venues including The Roxy, Studio 54, The Hacienda, Paradise Garage and CBGB while promoting club DJs such as Larry Levan, Danny Rampling, Alex Patterson and Paul Oakenfold.

Contributors and Notable Covers

Contributors included writers and photographers who later worked across The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Time Out, Vanity Fair and The New Yorker; photographers linked to the magazine included Steven Meisel, Ellen von Unwerth, Peter Lindbergh, David Bailey and Corinne Day. Notable cover subjects ranged from musicians Madonna, Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, Prince and Kurt Cobain to actors Meryl Streep, Daniel Day-Lewis, Tilda Swinton, Jodie Foster and Sean Penn and models such as Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington and Cindy Crawford. The magazine also featured designers and artists including Banksy, Damien Hirst, Takashi Murakami, Annie Leibovitz and Yves Saint Laurent on special issues and retrospectives.

Impact and Cultural Influence

The publication influenced music promotion strategies used by labels like Island Records, Rough Trade, 4AD, Virgin Records and Warner Bros. Records and helped popularize scenes connected to acid house, Britpop, grunge, trip hop and hip hop. Its aesthetic affected runway presentations by Maison Margiela, Versace, Prada and Balenciaga and inspired editorial approaches at magazines such as Vogue, i-D, Dazed & Confused and NME. The magazine's photography and typography appeared in exhibitions at institutions including the Victoria and Albert Museum, Tate Modern, Museum of Modern Art and Hayward Gallery and informed curricula at schools such as Central Saint Martins and Royal College of Art. Cultural figures citing its influence include Alexandra Shulman, Olivier Rousteing, Stella McCartney, Pharrell Williams and Giorgio Armani.

Business, Ownership, and Publication Changes

Throughout its history the title experienced ownership transfers involving companies such as W H Smith, EMAP, private equity investors and digital media groups that also managed publications like GQ, Elle, Cosmopolitan and Esquire. Shifts from monthly print to digital-first strategies mirrored trends affecting titles like NME and Time Out; relaunches in the late 2010s attempted to monetize archives alongside partnerships with fashion houses including Burberry, Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Prada. Financial pressures, advertising market changes tied to entities such as Google, Facebook and Apple and shifts in retail distribution through chains like WHSmith and John Lewis informed its periodic restructuring, editorial realignment and eventual relaunch efforts that invoked archival content featuring personalities such as Sting, Björk, Aaliyah and Rihanna.

Category:Magazines published in the United Kingdom