Vogue Italia editor-in-chief steps down

Vogue Italia editor-in-chief Emanuele Farneti has stepped down from his role at the fashion publication. Farneti joined Vogue Italia in 2017, succeeding the publication’s famed editor-in-chief Franca Sozzani, who unfortunately passed away from cancer.

In a very lengthy Instagram post, Farneti said:

“Vogue is entering a new chapter: it is going global. And because the beginning of any new chapter must coincide with the end of the last, I have decided to step down as EIC of Vogue Italia when our September issue is complete. It has been an honour to continue the tradition of innovation, boundary-breaking and image-making crafted through a uniquely Italian perspective that was established by my great predecessor, Franca. Whether it was the sold-out issues featuring illustration instead of photography or the all-white cover; the issue dedicated to children’s rights or the issue in which Lauren Hutton became the first woman over 70 ever to be featured on a Vogue cover; the issue entirely produced with people from the street or the 100 covers of last September; I believe that we have honoured the tradition of innovation and freedom that underlies the greatness of this magazine. This attribute is what has made Vogue Italia the voice of an industry that does credit to Italy around the world. Italy is a culture that deserves respect, and to be represented for what it is: the culture from which many of fashion’s most influential ideas are conceived and through which the best quality of craftsmanship is produced. There will be a time to tell you about my next adventure.

Today is for farewells and thank yous. I owe my sincere gratitude to those who gave me the opportunity to edit this magazine. To all my travel companions: I am sure you will keep up the spirit of Vogue Italia even in a different context. My greatest thanks go to all those who have read Vogue Italia and written to me over the years, expressing their support or criticism. I have learnt that this is a community of people who, along with their sense of beauty, share a precise idea of a free and open society, made of rights and values that geographical or generational distances do not weaken, but rather strengthen. Of the many lessons that I shall take with me, I highlight one: we can be, and not infrequently have been, the magazine that tries to push the envelope just a step further. Fashion can do that, this editorial staff can do that, and I have every hope that they will continue to do it in the future.”

Farneti was a Condé Nast veteran. In 1999, he joined the media conglomerate as part of the team that launched GQ Italia. After leaving Condé Nast, he worked at various other media titles until he returned to the company as editor-in-chief of Architectural Digest in 2014. In December 2015, he was appointed editor-in-chief of GQ.

Farneti’s departure comes as Condé Nast’s international editor-in-chief’s have been stepping down left and right. The editor-in-chief’s of Vogue Germany, Vogue Spain, Vogue Japan, and Vogue India all stepped down from their positions this year. One of the most high profile departures was Emmanuelle Alt who served as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris.