Nicholas Aburn’s path to AREA was never a straight line. He grew up watching CNN Style with his mother, worked full time at Prada while studying at Central Saint Martins, and famously failed under Louise Wilson before showing his collection anyway and becoming the first in his class to get a job when he was hired by Tom Ford. He now calls that failure a “delayed education,” one that taught him how to manage his own creative and emotional state — a lesson more valuable than any critique. From Ford, he learned the beauty of discipline and real clothes, and from Demna, during his time at Balenciaga couture, the importance of reduction and authenticity.

In this episode he speaks about balancing fantasy with function, leadership through empathy, and optimism as a deliberate practice rather than an accident of temperament. To Aburn, what’s contemporary now is simple and human, defined by less ego, more honesty, and the courage to describe what you actually see.

Episode Highlights:

On Early Fascination with Fashion — Watching CNN Style with his mother shaped his early understanding of fashion as something serious, creative, and meaningful.

On Working at Prada During School — Balancing full-time retail work at Prada with his studies at Central Saint Martins taught him discipline and grounded his creativity in reality.

On Failure as a Delayed Education — His experience with Louise Wilson became what he now calls a “delayed education,” showing him that self-management is the foundation of all creative longevity.

On Observation and Duality — Moving between Prada’s commercial world and St. Martins’ creative chaos made him both participant and observer, sharpening his sense of perspective.

On Learning from Mentors — From Tom Ford he learned the beauty of discipline and real clothes, and from Demna the importance of reduction and authenticity.

On Leadership and Empathy — As creative director at AREA, he sees leadership as both creative and emotional, centered on clarity, inspiration, and shared enthusiasm.

On Wearability and Fantasy — He views AREA’s identity as a balance between product and performance, believing that real clothes and theatricality can coexist.

On Introversion as Creative Strength — A self-professed introvert, he finds energy and perspective in solitude, designing through observation rather than noise.

On Optimism as Practice — He treats optimism not as naivety but as a skill that fuels creativity, curiosity, and resilience.

On What’s Contemporary Now — For Aburn, it’s simple and human — less ego, more honesty, and the courage to describe what you actually see.

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When we first thought to sit down with Jerry Lorenzo, we planned to talk about culture, fashion, the first official womenswear collection from Fear of God, and the unique background that made his future feel wide open — though not necessarily destined for fashion. We did all of that, but the timely wisdom he shared reached far beyond the industry. Lorenzo speaks with the calm authority of someone who knows where he stands and why, and his reflections feel essential — filled with the kind of clarity we all need in an era when certainty is elusive and conviction, or belief in something greater than oneself, is a most valuable anchor. His belief in answering the call that is uniquely yours, above the noise of approval or criticism, is both admirable and a powerful reminder worth practicing in any life or vocation. Twelve years after founding the brand, his advice to himself is still to keep on going.

Episode Highlights:

On Early Lessons in Presentation — Growing up as a person of color in different communities taught him that how you present yourself carries weight, shaping both identity and access.

On Faith as Foundation — He describes his father’s spiritual approach to leadership and how faith became the anchor of his own creative and business philosophy.

On Purpose Over Product — For Lorenzo, design begins with intention — clothing as a means to help people feel grounded, confident, and closer to their best selves.

On Fear and Freedom — He reframes “Fear of God” as reverence, explaining that true freedom begins where fear ends — a guiding principle for both life and brand.

On Conviction and Calling — He believes success lies in answering the unique call on one’s life, rather than seeking approval or validation from the outside world.

On Women’s Wear — The decision to expand into women’s fashion stemmed from a sense of absence — creating what he felt was missing for women just as he had for men.

On Sobriety and Clarity — Sobriety gave him the ability to be fully himself in every space — a kind of freedom and constancy that fuels his creativity and peace.

On Building a World, Not Just a Brand - Fear of God is less a label than a language. Its universe extends beyond clothes into values — presence, reverence, and belief.

On Fashion’s State of Flux — Lorenzo sees fashion as a mirror of the times — reactive, often performative, and more about perception than truth.

On Success and Stillness — Twelve years after founding Fear of God, he measures success not by scale or revenue, but by peace, integrity, and the ability to keep going.

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What’s more contemporary than the pursuit of happiness? The restless task of creating it, sustaining it, sharing it. It’s a game not so far from that of the creative class, with its inevitable demand for the next turn, the next gesture, the next affirmation of relevance. Designers, editors, critics, even self-anointed new media mavens know it all too well. Exploring larger cultural truths in their microcosmic forms is a habit we’ve happily returned to this season, and one we look forward to sharing across the months ahead.

Because happiness, like relevance, is never fixed. It slips just out of reach the moment it seems secured, requiring constant reexamination and reinvention. The same holds true for the people and industries we cover: what feels urgent today risks redundancy tomorrow. That cycle of fulfillment, exhaustion, and reinvention, is the rhythm of both creativity and life. And in that rhythm lies the story of what it means to be contemporary now.

New episodes begin Monday, October 6th.

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While the world appears to have taken leave of anything resembling objective reality, and our feeds continue to oscillate between the surreal and the mundane in a choreography of dissonance, we have returned to the quiet act of making. Production on the new season is underway, and with it comes the opportunity to explore the role creativity holds within culture. More than ornament, it serves as reflection, as resistance, and occasionally, as remedy.

Whether through personal narrative or collective observation, there is no shortage of terrain. The world, in all its instability and invention, continues to offer more questions than answers. That feels like the right place to begin.

We will be back this fall with a new season!

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In recent years, it’s become harder to tell whether fashion can still stand on its own, without leaning on the scaffolding of sport, film, or whatever cultural tentpole happens to be in rotation. But with the sustained relevance of System and the sharp ambition behind its latest expansion, Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Wingfield offers a clear answer: yes—fashion can still trade on itself.

It is a business, unquestionably—but a beautifully complex one, in constant dialogue with culture. And in that dialogue, the currency of creativity proves more stable than gold. Unlike so many aspects of contemporary life, its role is inimitable, its value evergreen.

In this conversation, Wingfield traces his own route—from suburban teenage boredom and record sleeves to the visual literacy that would come to define his work. We talk about System’s origins, the logic behind System Collections, and what gets lost when coverage is dictated by algorithms rather than curiosity.

“The most interesting commentary on a film often came from the costume designer, not the star. That logic applies to fashion too.” - Jonathan Wingfield

Episode Highlights:

From suburban boredom to fashion curiosity - Wingfield traces his creative awakening to the disconnect between small-town life and the cultural energy of nearby London—music, record sleeves, and magazines were his early portals.

The record sleeve as first editorial influence - A Peter Saville–designed cover for New Order’s True Faith becomes an entry point into the world of typography, photography, and image-making.

A formative mentorship on the road - A months-long carpool with UK publishing legend Alan Lewis becomes a crash course in magazine craft—headline writing, storytelling, and editorial voice.

Why editing is about the final decisions - For Wingfield, the joy of putting a magazine together isn’t in the interviews—it’s in the final details: captions, pull quotes, and headlines that shape meaning.

System’s founding as a response to access fatigue - Frustrated by increasingly hollow interviews with celebrities, Wingfield wanted a space for deeper, more sustained conversations—System was his answer.

Virgil Abloh as a cultural inflection point - A cover story featuring Virgil becomes a turning point for System, bridging industry credibility and outsider influence, and reframing who the magazine is for.

The slow reveal: System’s relationship to time - Wingfield shares why the magazine resists real-time commentary and favors longer arcs—interviewing designers after the noise has died down.

The launch of System Collections - He introduces System’s newest project: a seasonal, time-capsule-style publication that offers deep visual and editorial takes on fashion month.

On interviewing well—and waiting for silence - One of his top tips: don’t rush to fill silences. Real answers often follow the pause.

What’s contemporary now? Swerve the algorithm - Wingfield’s closing reflection: avoid being trapped in feedback loops. Discovery, intuition, and counterintuitive creativity are what truly move culture forward.

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It’s easy to repeat oneself in fashion. Certain truths return again and again, not because we lack imagination, but because they remain unresolved. One of them is this—authenticity isn’t rare because people are unwilling to be real, but because many still don’t know who they are. Carlos Nazario does. And more than that, he shows up as himself, without spectacle and without self-mythologizing.

What makes this conversation compelling isn’t only his perspective on fashion or culture. It’s the way he holds space for complexity—the exhaustion and the joy, the disenchantment and the deep love for the work. There’s a calm clarity in how he speaks about image-making, identity, and the creative life. Not as fixed roles, but as evolving practices.

For anyone feeling unmoored by the state of the industry or uncertain about how to keep creating in a time that feels increasingly TBD, this episode offers something more valuable than certainty. It offers perspective, and the steady presence of someone who has figured out how to move forward without losing himself along the way.

“I love fashion. I don’t always love the fashion industry.” - Carlos Nazario 

Episode Highlights:

Redefining Exhaustion in Creative Work - Carlos discusses the mental and emotional toll of fashion’s nonstop pace—and why he refuses to glorify burnout, emphasizing presence, boundaries, and creative sustainability.

Loving Fashion vs. Loving the Industry - He unpacks the tension between a deep love for fashion itself and disillusionment with the political performance of the industry.

The Power and Limits of the Internet in Fashion - Carlos reflects on the democratization of commentary online, and how the resulting noise makes it harder to sift out meaningful, resonant work.

Image as a Tool for Transformation - A powerful meditation on imagemaking as a vehicle for cultural change, generational thought, and emotional resonance.

Resisting Small Talk, Embracing Realness - He shares his discomfort with surface-level conversations in industry spaces, and his craving for meaningful, emotionally honest exchanges.

Retreat, Identity & Reclaiming the Self - A story about a therapeutic retreat—where he wasn’t allowed to share his profession or last name—leads to a conversation about selfhood outside of industry labels.

Critique vs. Cruelty - Carlos addresses the rise of snarky, anonymous fashion criticism, drawing a distinction between valuable critique and performative cruelty.

The Weight of Representation - He speaks candidly about his experience as a Black, Afro-Latino stylist—and how resilience, optimism, and responsibility continue to shape his point of view.

Time, Mortality & Legacy - A moving reflection on life’s brevity, what it means to step away, and how true impact often comes from stillness and intentionality.

What’s Contemporary Now - Looking within. Carlos defines contemporaneity as self-awareness, intention, and resisting herd mentality in favor of independent thought.

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 It is Monday, but not just any Monday. It's the first Monday in May queue. The flash bulbs, the group chats, the live tweets, the MET Gala is here, and with it, the annual flood of speculation.

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Describing Lyas as a "fashion narrator" rather than a critic or commentator feels curiously apt in a moment when fashion could use a little more imagination and a little less judgment. Storytelling, after all, is what he does best — with a kind of honesty that carries weight without ever feeling heavy. Unlike many of his peers, Lyas is as much a creator as he is a commentator, sculpting himself into a living performance while quietly building a world behind the scenes with two films already in the works. His energy moves through the industry like a weather system — sometimes wild, but never without purpose — electrifying the air it passes through. He learned early that the worst thing anyone could do was ask him to tame himself, and it is precisely this refusal that has shaped his path. Fired from every traditional job he attempted, Lyas carved out a future that runs on instinct, imagination, and just the right measure of delusion. In an industry that often rewards conformity, he is a reminder that sometimes it is the unruliest forces that end up remaking the landscape.

"I couldn’t be normal. My normal is crazy." - Lyas 

Episode Highlights:

Growing up in Rouen - Lyas reflects on his early years in a city steeped in history but devoid of contemporary culture — and how moving to Paris unlocked his sense of identity and creative belonging.

The Power of Performance - How 11 years of drama school shaped Lyas’s relationship to fashion, storytelling, and self-expression — and why performance is an essential part of his daily life.

Feeling the Most Tamed — and the Most Lost - A candid look at how being "tamed" or asked to tone down his personality deeply affected Lyas’s sense of self-worth — and why authenticity became non-negotiable.

Building a Career Without a Blueprint: - Lyas shares how unconventional paths, personal resilience, and creative hunger shaped a career that defies traditional expectations — and why doing things his own way became the only option.

Living Rent-Free in Paris (and Building a Dream) - The surreal stretch of living rent-free during COVID — and how it gave Lyas the time and space to develop the projects that would launch his digital career.

Making Fashion Critique Accessible - Why Lyas believes fashion commentary should be democratized — speaking to real people, not just insiders — and how he uses humor and storytelling to break down barriers.

Choosing Integrity Over Industry Pressure - The moment Lyas chose honesty over maintaining industry relationships, after attending a disappointing show and refusing to stay silent.

The Future of Fashion (and the Role of Excitement) - How Lyas manages to stay genuinely excited about fashion, especially by championing young designers, despite the industry's increasingly commercial pressures.

Writing Stories, Not Just Reviews - Lyas shares his passion for screenwriting, the difference between writing scripts versus essays, and the films he hopes will challenge and change culture.

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In fashion, there are stylists—and then there are image-makers. As the “C” in KCD and one of the first male editors to define women’s fashion editorial, Paul Cavaco helped shape the modern visual vocabulary of the 1990s, styling everything from Harper’s Bazaar under Liz Tilberis to Madonna’s era-defining Sex book with Steven Meisel and Fabien Baron. Tonne Goodman, whose early days included modeling for Richard Avedon and assisting Diana Vreeland, brought that same instinct for clarity and cultural intuition to her longstanding role as the American fashion editor of Vogue. In a moment when the function—and future—of the fashion editor is being reexamined, hearing from two of its originals felt not only timely, but essential. Their conversation is a reminder that while fashion constantly reinvents itself, the value of vision and integrity never goes out of style.

"I grew up in the Bronx. There was no fashion in my house. What we had was music, grit, and individuality." - Paul Cavaco 

"Everything really does happen for a reason. Even the catastrophic moments usually lead to something better." - Tonne Goodman 

Episode Highlights:

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While it’s nearly impossible to open your eyes without encountering some news item signaling uncertainty or disruption, we couldn’t help but find excitement in the inevitability of change—even when that change isn’t exactly what we might have chosen ourselves. With the season’s remaining episodes ahead, it felt like the right moment to invite audience participation by opening the mic to your questions—ones you’d like answered by the creatives who make up our incredible cast.

DM us on Instagram or email us at [email protected]. If you've enjoyed the show, leave us a review and we'll be back soon with more episodes answering the insatiable question, what is contemporary now?

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