Most fashion editors would swap their first-borns for a cover shoot with the Duchess of Cambridge — so how did South African Marie Claire beat the world to score an exclusive shot of Catherine? They didn’t.
Instead, the publication took Catherine’s head — complete with her trademark glossy locks — and plonked in onto a model’s body.
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Not only is the body in a provocative hand-on-hip pose the real Duchess would never strike, but it is wearing a garish dress by South African designer Clive Rundle.
The magazine has also digitally removed the model’s hands and replaced them with Catherine’s, presumably for some added realism.
Editor Aspasia Karras has defended her decision to use the image of Catherine on the cover, saying it was meant as a “fan art tribute”.
“We were so inspired by her fairy tale wedding and her life as a modern-day princess, which is why we elected Kate Middleton as our cover star for the August issue,” Karras said.
“The cover is actually a hyper-real illustration of Kate, meant to be a fan art tribute to fashion’s new royal icon.”
There are four more digitally altered images of the Duchess inside the magazine and they have sparked outrage amongst readers, who took to the magazine’s website to voice their complaints.
“So she didn’t actually pose for the cover? How is that a good thing? Aren’t you cheating your readers as well as your cover subject?” one reader wrote.
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It’s not the first time at heavily retouched image of Catherine has appeared on a magazine cover. British Grazia magazine caused controversy when it digitally slimmed her waist for its royal wedding cover.
Your say: What do you think of the Marie Claire cover?
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