Behind the Scenes of ‘Garage’ Magazine’s Rihanna Cover Shoot

In the “Human Future” issue of VICE’s Garage magazine, photographer Deana Lawson shot a stunning series of photographs of pop royalty Rihanna. But choosing Lawson as a photographer for the cover was just as important as choosing the subject—the Princeton professor is known for her portraits that push back against stereotypical black narratives.

Lawson approached the Rihanna shoot as a commercial project, and it’s clear that her lens aimed to present the star in a way that we rarely see her. The backdrops are sometimes whimsical and floral—described as a vintage Caribbean queen look—but Rihanna is always positioned powerfully and irreverently. Rihanna even shared some video of the shoot on her own social media when the issue dropped last week.

We spoke with Garage editor-in-chief Mark Guiducci about the cover.

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