Media conglomerate VICE is taking over Garage Magazine, expanding its reach into the world of contemporary art. As stated in an announcement released today, Vice Media has taken the controlling stake in the youth-oriented arts and fashion publication.
Since Garage Magazine was founded under the editorial leadership of billionaire art entrepreneur Dasha Zhukova back in 2011, the publication has amassed an impressive portfolio created in collaboration of blue-chip artists including Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, and Damien Hirst. Earlier this year, the magazine commissioned Swiss artist Urs Fischer to create portraits of Beyonce Knowles in his signature paint-on-photograph style.
Under the new arrangement, Garage Magazine will continue to publish biannual issues in English and Russian. According to an official statement, VICE’s involvement with the publication will mainly entail peripheral initiatives to help build the publication’s digital presence, with an expanded editorial team that will support an online video channel streaming original content. The deal’s terms remain undisclosed, however.
“Dasha and the Garage team have created an amazing product that melds the worlds of publishing and technology with art, design, and fashion to create something totally unique,” said Tom Punch, global creative director of VICE, in a statement. He added: “Garage will bring an arsenal of creative ideas and people to VICE, so we are thrilled to help Dasha grow Garage’s digital presence and bring their ideas and collaborations to new audiences around the globe.”
Urs Fischer. (Beyonce Photographed by Robin Harper with hair by Kim Kimble and makeup by Sir John). Courtesy of Garage Magazine via YouTube.
Garage Magazine joins VICE’s other independent verticals, Broadly, Noisey, and Motherboard, which specialize, respectively, in women’s interests, music, and science and technology. VICE previously acquired i-D Magazine in 2012. At the time, Terry Jones, who founded i-D in 1980, said that “working with VICE means partnering with a company that knows how to expand from print to digital in a smart way.”
The new partnership has a similar appeal: “VICE, with its expertise in digital and broadcast media, will allow us to continue evolving in the digital environment, push publishing protocol, and remain a groundbreaking publication in this rapidly changing media landscape,” reads a statement on Garage Magazine‘s website.