It’s no secret that fashion can be a hard industry to break into, but it’s not all nepo babies whacking Hermès handbags down on desks when they come into work at 2pm. What’s Contemporary Now?, the eye-opening podcast hosted by Christopher Michael and produced by Shayan Asadi pulls back fashion’s glossy veneer to reveal the fiercely dedicated, endlessly passionate people who put in the work behind the camera.
“My hope is that people realise they’re not alone or different from people they admire,” says host Christopher. “The human experience is inevitable, despite your accomplishments.” First launching as a biweekly digital platform running from 2011 to 2014, Christopher relaunched the project in podcast form in September 2022 to take stock of the ever-shifting creative landscape post-pandemic. True to its inquisitive title, the conversations are probing and illuminating. Christopher pinpoints curiosity as a common thread connecting his wildly successful guests, who range from legendary photographer Glen Luchford to @stylenotcom’s disruptive Beka Gvishiani, and i-D’s very own Alastair McKimm and Carlos Nazario.
While the podcast is ostensibly a sociological dive into the way creativity exists now, it’s also a must-listen for anyone hoping to make it in an industry that is famously tough to crack. The exchanges feel refreshingly down to earth, covering subjects from imposter syndrome and the importance of failure to that elusive work/life balance.
According to Christopher, what’s contemporary now is, “seeing success across so many different versions of what it can look like”. The contemporary is not fixed. It’s always unfolding rapidly before our eyes and one job of the creative is to document it as it happens, to capture the moment before it disappears. Evidently, responses to the podcast’s core question are as individual and diverse as the guests themselves. Below, we explore some of the key learnings from 10 episodes.
Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez of Proenza Schouler
When Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez started Proenza Schouler in 2002, fashion still felt like an indie scene. They made clothes for their friends. Their friends were artists. And this is how they built up the reputation of their quintessential New York cool-girl brand. In the two decades since, they’ve seen the industry transform from this alternative subcultural space into a rapid, business-driven market. The fashion industry has sped up, but its fast-paced, high-output nature gives the duo constant opportunities to improve and elaborate with each season. “Starting a brand today, you really need to have a clear, concise message that’s not stepping on anyone else’s toes,” Lazaro tells Michael. What’s contemporary now? “Individuality, standing for what you stand for and being proud of who you are.”
Julia Sarr-Jamois, fashion director at British Vogue
In an era when creatives are under pressure to invent personal brands, many have internal conflicts about the public perception of their careers. When stylist and fashion director at British Vogue Julia Sarr-Jamois first became known for her distinctive street style, she was also working to build her professional reputation as a fashion editor. She worried that her public persona would get in the way of how people saw her work, but balancing her styling career with her style icon status helped set the tone for the hybrid role of the fashion editor today. Julia started her career at i-D aged 19, before landing a fashion editor role at Wonderland aged 21. Her ascent was rapid yet traditional, so what excites her most about the next generation is how they’re carving out their own paths and using social media to take less conventional routes into the industry. What’s contemporary now? “It’s an attitude. It’s an openness. It’s a kindness. Moving forward. Being more inclusive.”
Youssef Marquis, founder of fashion communications agency, Marquis
Youssef Marquis describes himself as “a pop culture monster” who “lives and dies for fashion”. This all-consuming obsession with iconic, culture-defining fashion moments led to a prolific career working for brands including Lanvin, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton. Earlier this year, to diversify his output and work on a wider variety of projects, Youssef launched his own communications consulting agency with support from LVMH. This means he’s now working with young, emerging designers as well as established brands. The advice he gives to young designers is to focus on their own unique message and build a community online with identity and authenticity as the key pillars. You have to consider what you want to say, how you’re going to say it and who should help you say it. What’s contemporary now? “Shaping brand messages that leave no one behind.”
Carlos Nazario, global fashion director at i-D
Carlos Nazario, stylist and global fashion director at i-D, credits his workaholic nature to both his New York upbringing and the feeling of responsibility he has to show that people like him can operate at such a high level in fashion. This illuminating conversation comes to life through Carlos’ openness and vulnerability, sharing what it’s like to work in fashion as someone who’s prone to bouts of anxiety, depression and body image issues. It will ring true for anyone who’s ever struggled with feelings that they’re either doing too much or not doing enough. When it comes to his advice for budding stylists, Carlos is keen to emphasise the importance of assisting and respecting what people who came before can teach us. What’s contemporary now? “It’s about us being able to portray the world as it really exists and not being held to one viewpoint of what people should look like or feel like or think like or act like.”
Beka Gvishiani of @stylenotcom
The rapid, divisive rise of Instagram account @stylenotcom has taken the fashion world by storm over the past two years, one all caps white and blue square post at a time. Sharing rapid fashion news, facts and straight to the point show reports from fashion week, the page has amassed over 200K followers. Its creator, Georgian native Beka Gvishiani, has always had a great appreciation for headlines, believing words can give you a deeper understanding than pictures and videos alone. His speedy, curatorial approach was fostered during his teenage years on Tumblr and fashion forum, The Fashion Spot. Driven by nostalgia married with a mastery of contemporary digital media, Beka looks back in order to look forward. What’s contemporary now? “Everything that comes from your heart. I thought nostalgia was contemporary so I did it with my page, but it was coming from my heart.”
Alastair McKimm, global editor-in-chief at i-D
Stylist, consultant and i-D’s global editor-in-chief, Alastair McKimm still gets imposter syndrome from time to time. When these feelings arise, he reminds himself that the people and brands he’s working with thrive off collaboration. When you’re working with your heroes, it’s normal to feel a little nervous and intimidated, but you can get over that hump by reminding yourself that you’re there to share your opinion. Alastair believes that art and commerce don’t have to be separate. Making more money means you can make more work and give more back to the people who make the work. What’s contemporary now? “Truth, authenticity, honesty. Being very human. Feeling our feelings and surrounding ourselves with the people that make us the best that we can be.”
Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, global fashion editor-at-large at Vogue
Finding a work/life balance isn’t always easy when your work is a lifestyle and your personality becomes a brand. Vogue’s global fashion editor at large, Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, thinks balance is possible, but she’s not quite found it yet. In this episode, she discusses her complicated relationship with work ethic and how, recently, she’s started to value selectivity above maximising the volume of her output. The fashion editor describes herself as a “problem child” at Vogue because she pushes against the restrictions of working inside such a mainstream, legacy fashion publication, but these confines force her to be more creative and clearer about her vision. What’s contemporary now? “Reckoning with the truth of who we are, the art that we make and the truth we want to put out into the world is probably the most contemporary pursuit one could embark upon.”
Lucien Pagès, founder of PR agency, Lucien Pagès Communication
In a fast-paced, rapidly evolving industry, learning to be patient can be a challenge. Taking the time to learn has been integral for fashion PR kingpin Lucien Pagès. He began his career as a designer in the 90s at Yves Saint Laurent and Dior before founding his namesake PR agency in 2006. Since then, the tools have changed, but his job hasn’t. It’s still about communication and connecting people. There’s often pressure in fashion to be as multi-hyphenate as possible, but Pagès would rather focus on what he does best and collaborate with other people rather than trying to do everything himself. His advice for emerging fashion brands is to focus on building a world that people will come into. What’s contemporary now? “Curiosity and proposing solutions and visions. Each step matters.”
Amber Valletta, supermodel, actress and environmental activist
Creating and consuming sustainably isn’t about being perfect. Supermodel, actress and environmental activist Amber Valletta thinks that perfectionism causes paralysis. Instead, we should be looking to create solutions, even if we make mistakes along the way. In this episode, Valletta, who has worked as a sustainability ambassador for Karl Lagerfeld, British Vogue and New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology, discusses what some of these solutions might look like, from re-education and making do with what we already have, to local activism and biodesign. What’s contemporary now? “What’s so exciting about fashion being a catalyst for change is that we touch culture. It defines a moment. If fashion could harness that power and move it through the supply chain to make it more fair and equitable and sustainable, the sky’s the limit. We could literally change the world.”
Glen Luchford, photographer
Successful creatives rarely achieve that success without experiencing failures on the way. Glen Luchford broke his toe kicking a cabinet when he realised he’d messed up the exposure on a 1993 Björk shoot, but the photographer values failure and self-deprecation. In this episode, he emphasises the importance of finishing a project even if you don’t think it’s very good, while also discussing the way he foresees the metaverse transforming the role of the fashion photographer into the role of the creative director. What is contemporary now? “My personal focus is on the metaverse and how that’s going to change our lives in such a dramatic way.”