Description
Collector's Note – Why This Issue Matters
The September 2004 issue of Vogue is one of the most model-saturated editions of the early 2000s, associated with three of the most significant names in the industry at that moment: Gisele Bündchen, Daria Werbowy, and Natalia Vodianova. Each represented a distinct archetype in the fashion world's evolving conversation about what a model could be and mean. Gisele Bündchen was, by 2004, the undisputed commercial force at the top of the industry — the Brazilian supermodel whose combination of athletic physicality, warmth, and extraordinary versatility had made her the highest-earning model in the world and a dominant presence in the campaigns of virtually every major luxury house. Her association with this issue places it firmly within the peak of her reign as the defining model of her generation, a period documented extensively across the Gisele Bündchen magazine collection. Alongside her, Werbowy and Vodianova represented the next wave — cooler, more androgynous, more European in sensibility — and their combined presence in a single September issue spoke to a fashion moment actively negotiating between the supermodel glamour of the 1990s and something newer and more austere.
September 2004 also carried a specific cultural weight beyond the fashion calendar. The issue's "People Are Talking About" section features Alexandra and Vanessa Kerry, daughters of then-presidential candidate John Kerry, speaking to Julia Reed just weeks before the November 2004 election — an unusual intersection of high fashion editorial and live political news that gives this issue a documentary dimension beyond its runway content. Elsewhere, the issue engages with film, television, music, and international travel in the full-spectrum editorial format that defined American Vogue's ambition under Anna Wintour: fashion as one thread in a much larger cultural fabric. For collectors building a serious archive of early 2000s fashion and culture in print, the original magazines from 2004 offer rich surrounding context for this landmark edition, and the full run of original Vogue magazine issues remains the most comprehensive single-publication record of American fashion across the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
About the Publication
American Vogue, founded in 1892 and shaped into its modern form under Anna Wintour's editorship beginning in 1988, was by 2004 the global standard-bearer for luxury fashion journalism. Its September issue each year functioned as the fashion industry's most important annual statement — typically the largest single magazine issue published in the United States by page count, packed with advertising from every major house and editorial content that set the visual and cultural agenda for the fall season. Its readership was affluent, style-literate, and culturally engaged, treating the magazine as both a practical fashion resource and a serious document of the broader cultural moment. The early 2000s represented a period of genuine editorial ambition at the title, with Wintour's team consistently blending high fashion with politics, film, literature, and social commentary in ways that extended the magazine's reach well beyond its core audience.
Key Highlights Inside
- Gisele Bündchen, Daria Werbowy, and Natalia Vodianova: Three of the most prominent models of the era appear in this issue, collectively representing the full spectrum of early 2000s fashion — from Gisele's dominant commercial supermodel presence to Werbowy and Vodianova's ascending cooler, more European sensibility.
- "A Family Affair" — Alexandra and Vanessa Kerry (p. 559): Julia Reed speaks with the daughters of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry during the final stretch of the 2004 election campaign — a rare moment of live political currency embedded in a fashion issue.
- Movies (p. 562): Sarah Kerr reviews Vanity Fair and The Motorcycle Diaries, two of the fall 2004 season's most culturally discussed films.
- Television (p. 576): Joan Juliet Buck profiles Drea de Matteo following her transition from The Sopranos to network television, alongside commentary on the emerging era of prestige and reality TV.
- Talent (p. 580): A profile of Brazilian actor Rodrigo Santoro, then emerging as an international leading man — a feature that reflects the issue's consistent attention to talent crossing between cultural industries.
- Beauty and Lifestyle Features: The issue documents fall 2004's defining beauty trends, including a feature on the season's dominant color (green, from celadon to emerald across accessories and makeup) and an examination of the era's return to high-maintenance, elaborately styled hair.
Condition & Rarity
September issues of Vogue from the early 2000s present specific condition challenges rooted in their extraordinary physical scale. Running to several hundred pages, these editions place considerable stress on spines and corners simply through their own weight, making edge wear the most common condition issue found in surviving copies. A copy grading Very Good with only minor edge wear represents a clean survivor for a twenty-year-old oversized periodical of this mass. The presence of a plastic protective sleeve indicates deliberate preservation storage at some point in the copy's history. For display and research purposes, a Very Good grade on a September Vogue of this era is a solid and presentable result — the editorial content remains fully intact and the issue retains its visual integrity as a fashion artifact.
Looking for More Issues Like This?
A September Vogue associated with Gisele Bündchen at the absolute peak of her reign is a natural anchor piece for any serious early 2000s fashion archive, and clean copies are consistently in demand. If this issue is no longer available, the Gisele Bündchen magazine collection brings together her most significant print appearances across publications and years — an essential resource for collectors focused on her career. The full archive of original Vogue magazine issues and the 2004 magazine collection are both worth exploring for collectors building out this corner of fashion history.