Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition is known as one of the American institutions invented to take commercial advantage of the male gaze. But according to Vanity Fair, the staff has long been thinking about how to make the models as much participants as objects. Editor MJ Day and her core team, comprised of all women, wanted to create a safe space as well as put together a magazine that include different ideas of beauty. Day said she learned a lot by traveling and shooting on location.
“Why are we only saying to ourselves that there’s just one type of person that’s worthy of being celebrated? It’s bullshit, and we all know it, and we all live it, yet it’s continued to be propagated in the media,” she said, according to Vanity Fair.
This year, the issue will include more participation from athletes, written contributions from models, more donations and causes, and empowerment: one model’s t-shirt says “Own it.” And for the first time in its 54-year history, the 2018 Swimsuit Issue will also feature a nude spread shot by a female photographer, Taylor Ballantyne, and an all-woman crew, called “In Her Own Words.” Day says she is interested to continue to pursue an idea she’s had for a while: how can she use the images that you’ve come to expect from S.I. to change attitudes about women?
The issue comes out next week. Check out some sneak peaks below.
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