Achenrin Madit by Steven Meisel finds joy in British Vogue April 2021

British Vogue Editor in Chief Edward Enninful shares his thoughts on the April covers — each dedicated to an expression of JOY! Edward speaks with great clarity on this topic of joy, citing it as a basic human need but also one that might seen “somehow inappropriate” in these “dark days”.

I admit that Enninful is out front of me in speaking to joy as a political issue or a political act, and not some self-centered, frivolous obsession. That’s food for late-night thought. Often it’s only the celebrations of joy that that keep the most marginalized and impoverished families — or even entire villages and towns — from sinking into total despair.

Writing 5 Ways to Boost Your Engagement of Life last week, I found research staying that even doing a fake smile reduces stress. I find that claim a bit over-simplistic and assume that the inference is that if one is in a neutral situation or one that is somewhat positive, smiling — for the camera perhaps — does have a positive impact on stress (cortisol) levels.

I’ve taken to telling my flowers how beautiful they are, before laughing at how silly is the gesture. But this bit of serendipity would probably garner Enninful’s approval as adding a bit of joy to the moment.

Precious Lee by Steven Meisel finds joy in British Vogue April 2021

On a mission to promote the “audacious power of joy”, Enninful reached out to legendary photographer Steven Meisel, suggesting that spring was coming and they needed to pull out all the stops on the April British Vogue covers — four of them.

The two creatives decided to go one step further and celebrate “Black joy – in the wake of so much recent reckoning.” The final result is these four vibrant British Vogue covers featuring Achenrin Madit, Janaye Furman, Mona Tougaard and Precious Lee.

For the first time in history — (hard to believe) — Carlyne Cerf de Dudzeele, now in her seventies, styled a British Vogue cover story. It’s a fact that the fashion editor is the perfect person to call if the goal is to focus on joyful designers and styling.

Read more particulars about the April issue of British Vogue in Edward Enninful’s letter.