Daria's second editorial in Vogue Paris this month is based on a series of photographs of the infamous Jane Birkin and Serge Gainsbourg.

La DécaDanse
Vogue Paris May 2010
Daria Werbowy and Francesco Vezzoli by Mario Testino

Vogue Paris May 2010

The powers that be at Vogue Paris must have been listening to my silent pleas, because after years of waiting someone has acted on a Jane Birkin inspired editorial with Daria. And not once, but twice in the past month. The combination of my top sixties chanteuse and top model have made for a nice surprise ... I'm listening to my Melody Nelson CD as I write! Although Vogue US had their dandy version of Daria as Jane, Vogue Paris goes for a significantly more erotic approach. Not surprising, considering Vogue Paris is always referred to as US Vogue's naughty younger sister.

The series is based on a set of photographs that Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin by Francis Giacobetti in 1974. For those of you who don't know Jane Birkin was a brilliant and beautiful French singer - her relationship with Serge Gainsbourg (a musical icon in France) was tempestuous and  produced some of the most infamous music of the time. Gone was the doe eyed Jane of the sixties and in came a raunchier version of the chanteuse. This is Daria's second most notable editorial accompanied by a male character (excluding those frivolous yet charming actor/model sets in Vogue US) ... I'm correct in thinking you can all remember In Love? It's interesting to note how I didn't once take a look at Vezzoli throughout this entire editorial. It doesn't help that his most discernible feature is his unruly mop of hair but Daria is center stage in every one of these photos.

Quite unlike her 2008 editorial, In Love, which although beautiful was flawed in its believability. This editorial is much more convincing. Erotic, albeit much less controversial than Jane and Serge's, both Francesco and Daria give their characters life and much needed depth. I love the modernity of this editorial, everything from the grey styling to the ultra sleek furniture (yes, I know - who's looking at the furniture?). It has a certain reservation to it that the pictures below, ahem, don't. An interesting foray from Mario Testino and Daria. I would have held this work more akin to Mario Sorrenti or even Inez and Vinoodh. Testino has stepped it up as of late and this editorial has only piqued my interest in what will come next ... like a Lauren Bacall reference? Carine, are you listening?

Francis Giacobetti for Liu December 1974 (Jane and Serge)

image sources: scanned by elsaskywalker at tFS, mulletproof at tFS