THE MATERIAL
RECORD
The Face Vol. 2 No. 7 catalogue image
Catalogue image · TMR-000541Open high-resolution record image ↗
TMR-000541Magazine object

The Face Vol. 2 No. 7

April 1989 · Jazzie B / Soul II Soul “Dance Stance” · Enrique Badulescu cover · Tank Girl / Poll Tax / Nick Knight

April 1989★ Gold Star object

April 1989 issue of The Face built around Jazzie B and Soul II Soul at the point of their breakthrough, with the cover framing Jazzie B as a new face of Black Britain. The exact Badulescu/Howe portrait was later selected for the National Portrait Gallery’s The Face Magazine: Culture Shift exhibition.

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Publication
The Face
Condition
Good+ / Very Good− appearance from supplied photographs.
Completeness
Main magazine appears intact from the supplied cover, rear-cover and contents views, but has not been page-by-page collated. No separately issued free gift or supplement has been established from the evidence reviewed.
Date
April 1989

Why this object matters →

Object record

Catalogue note

April 1989 issue of The Face built around Jazzie B and Soul II Soul at the point of their breakthrough, with the cover framing Jazzie B as a new face of Black Britain. The exact Badulescu/Howe portrait was later selected for the National Portrait Gallery’s The Face Magazine: Culture Shift exhibition. The issue also documents contemporary club culture, poll-tax politics, photography and an early mainstream Tank Girl feature, giving it unusually rich cross-archive value.

Why this object matters

The exhibition-recognised Jazzie B portrait, Soul II Soul breakthrough and early Tank Girl feature give the issue specific photographic and youth-cultural weight. Retain Gold at 9.3, distinguishing it from the archive’s foundational publication launches.

Evidence limits: Main magazine appears intact from the supplied cover, rear-cover and contents views, but has not been page-by-page collated. No separately issued free gift or supplement has been established from the evidence reviewed.

Score and assessment method

Archive Importance: 9.3 / 10 · Gold Star.

This is a curatorial judgement, not a measurement accurate to one tenth or a market valuation. Read the explanation and its evidence limits together.

How Archive Importance is assessed →

Inside this issue

10 selected entries checked against the photographed contents and credits. This is a partial index; page numbers are printed references, not a physical collation.

View the source photograph ↗ · Reviewed 2026-09-11

Feature · p. 38

Poll to Poll

Reporting on the poll tax in Scotland.

Feature · p. 44

Swing Out Sister

Feature · p. 46

Clubs: The World of Interiors

Photography · p. 50

Out of Fashion: Cindy Palmano

Photography: Cindy Palmano

Feature · p. 60

Dread at the Controls

Soul II Soul feature.

Feature · p. 70

Champagne Socialism

Feature · p. 85

New Boots and Panzers

Tank Girl.

Feature · p. 86

Radio Daze

Writing: Ian Penman

Photography · p. 98

Out of Fashion: Nick Knight

Photography: Nick Knight

Fashion story · p. 120

Circus, Circus

Photography: Michel Haddi · Styling: Venetia Scott

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