Fulvio Maiani and team create a high-contrast horror show — if you don’t like blood, that is — in this worthy editorial that for some is an examination of the price women pay in pursuit of flawlessness. 

With architecturally perfect, modern white outfits styled by Alessandro Buzzi, and pristine hair and makeup by Lorenzo Cherubini, nothing is out of place in this clinical examination of beauty — except perhaps the premise of the entire endeavor itself.

One can’t view Maiani’s editorial without thinking of Steven Klein. Refreshing my mind on Klein’s Crystal Renn and Karolina Kurkova in ‘Strict Institution’ for Interview Magazine March 2012. In no way am I suggesting this editorial is derivative (I don’t go crazy over being inspired by others), but Maiani’s scene is more detached and devoid of emotion. And if we’re thinking of the price women pay for beauty, how about Steven Meisel’s famous ‘Hollywood Life’ starring Linda Evangelista for Vogue Italia July 2005. ~ Anne