Poet Amanda Gorman featured on the cover of Vogue
Poet Amanda Gorman has another accolade to her name: She’s the first poet to be featured on a cover for Vogue.
The 23-year-old Harvard graduate and youth poet laureate was photographed by Annie Leibovitz for the May issue.
For the cover, she wore a Louis Vuitton blanket, styled as a dress, cinched with a wide and intricate gold belt. The garment’s vibrant pattern is inspired by African textiles and was designed by Virgil Abloh — Louis Vuitton’s first Black artistic director.
“The first poet ever on the cover of @voguemagazine. I am eternally grateful & do not expect to be the last—for what is poetry if not beauty?” Gorman wrote in an Instagram post. “What a joy to do this cover while wearing a piece designed by groundbreaking Black designer @virgilabloh that honors my heritage.”
Gorman shot to fame following her powerful reading of her poem “The Hill We Climb” at President Joe Biden’s inauguration in January.
She quickly signed with IMG models; graced the February cover of Time; and made a series of public appearances, including an International Women’s Day panel with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and supermodel Chrissy Teigen.
In September, Gorman will release two books — a collection of her poetry, “The Hill We Climb and Other Poems” and a kid’s picture book “Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem” — which have already topped the bestseller lists on Amazon.
“It took so much labor, not only on behalf of me, but also of my family and of my village, to get here,” Gorman told Vogue.
The poet recognized everyone who has supported her on her meteoric rise.
“This is called the Rise of Amanda Gorman,” she wrote on Instagram, “but it is truly for all of you, both named and unseen, who lift me up.”
Gorman, who has expressed interest in running for office in the future, has spoken about the potency of using once’s voice as a political tool and her own calling to do so.
She told CNN’s Anderson Cooper following her inauguration appearance that she has a mantra she repeats to herself before every reading.
“I am the daughter of Black writers who are descended from Freedom Fighters who broke their chains and changed the world. They call me,” she stated.
But her ambition also comes with complex feelings, she told Vogue.
Following her Inauguration Day reading, she wrote in her journal: “I’ve learned that it’s okay to be afraid. And what’s more, it’s okay to seek greatness. That does not make me a black hole seeking attention. It makes me a supernova.”
