The 40th anniversary issue features seven different covers which bring together generations of i-D cover stars, as well as a limited edition hardback version of the magazine featuring artwork by New York graffiti artist Futura 2000.
Under the leadership of Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director Alastair McKimm, the magazine’s latest edition focuses on the key themes which embody i-D's DNA, that of legacy, mentorship and family, say the publishers; from cover stars Kendrick Lamar and his mentee Baby Keem; to Björk and Arca; Kristen and Lily McMenamy; Ned Sims photographed by his father, David Sims; and i-D’s Contributing Editor Paloma Elsesser and her younger siblings Sage and Ama.
In addition, long-time i-D contributors Willy Vanderperre and Olivier Rizzo have recreated one of i-D’s most memorable covers, from The Inspiration Issue, February 2001 with their current muses Daan Duez and Ilona Desmet, and i-D digs into its archive with a previously unpublished cover from Nigel Schafran’s Teenage Precinct Shoppers series in collaboration with Melanie Ward, originally published in i-D in 1990.
Alongside the cover stories, the issue includes a 65 page special archive portfolio, which explores i-D’s history through the decades. Featuring work and musings from i-D’s family including, founders Terry and Tricia Jones, Simon Foxton, i-D’s former Fashion Director Elgar Johnson, Mark and Tyrone Lebon, Adwoa Aboah, i-D’s former Editor-in-Chief Holly Shackleton, stylist Jane How and a tribute to the late Judy Blame by Juergen Teller and Kim Jones.
“I used to read i-D magazine in Nottingham where I went to university, studying fashion design, and from the first copy of i-D I bought after leaving Belfast in 1997 I collected every issue. With i-D I had found a publication that spoke my language. Street culture, fashion, music, art all rolled into one. Over my 20 year career at i-D I went from assistant to stylist to Fashion Editor to Fashion Director to Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director. I am truly humbled by this position now on the eve of i-D’s 40th anniversary,” said i-D’s Editor in Chief and Creative Director Alastair McKimm.
“We’ve been working on this issue all year. My first phone call at the start of 2020 was to i-D’s founders, Terry and Tricia Jones. I didn’t have a specific idea but I thought they might if I planted the seed. What came to fruition is Terry’s 40 Winks portfolio, a truly iconic journey through i-D’s 40 year history that inspired the entire archive section of the issue. I’m so proud of the work we have created this year during such a tumultuous time in world history. Huge thanks and so much love to my lean, mean, creativity machine of a team and the countless contributors that make this very special issue so very special.”
i-D’s “The 40th Anniversary Issue” is available on newsstands and online.
