The 27th issue has been curated by Glenn Martens, the Belgian creative director of both Diesel and Y/Project.

Martens’ work is steeped in gothic imagery taken from the Flemish masters, often reworked through a contemporary digitally-informed lens. This juxtaposition plays a central role in his issue, balancing the historical with the now. A substantial portfolio shot in Martens’ hometown of Bruges plays on this theme; Photographer Arnaud Lajeunie and stylist Ursina Gysi photographed 10 years of Y/Project on iconic Belgian models like Anouck Lepere, Delphine Bafort, Kim Peers, Anne-Catherine Lacroix and Roos Van Bosstraeten throughout the medieval city.

The fascination of a muse, in this case the Pre-Raphaelite artist Elizabeth Siddal, is dissected in an essay by Nicole DeMarco, exploring how all redhead muses of history might owe their it-girl statuses to Siddal. The longest extensions made by hair artist Cyndia Harvey is photographed in a series of images by Jordan Hemingway and stylist Robbie Spencer inspired by women like Siddal with fashion by Diesel, Y/Project and Jean Paul Gaultier Couture. Turning the idea on its head, in a series of self-portraits Sharok, the Iranian-American adult performer, takes his agency back in a discussion about the self and representation.

A continuation of this contemplation, Paul Kooiker photographs a longtime muse, using clay and forms to play with the shape of the body. The sitter becomes sculpture. Similarly, a carte blache beauty series by makeup artist Inge Grognard and photographer Zhong Lin turns face into the canvas of artwork — with the striking cover image of A MAGAZINE curated by GLENN MARTENS being taken from this series.

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