What's Contemporary Now? Podcast Por What's Contemporary arte de portada

What's Contemporary Now?

What's Contemporary Now?

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Designed for curious minds, "What's Contemporary Now?" engages various thought leaders across cultural industries taking in their broad, compelling perspectives and unveiling their common threads. Hosted by Christopher Michael Produced by Shayan AsadiWhat's Contemporary Arte Diseño y Artes Decorativas
Episodios
  • Sarah Ball on Editing What’s Contemporary Now at WSJ. Magazine
    Nov 3 2025
    At this year’s WSJ. Magazine Innovator Awards, Billie Eilish asked, “If you’re a billionaire, why are you a billionaire? Give your money away” — a line that instantly reverberated far beyond the room. It was a reminder of the event’s magnetic pull and its place as a mirror for culture’s contradictions. Under Editor in Chief Sarah Ball, WSJ. Magazine has become precisely that kind of reflection: glamorous, self-aware, and culturally indispensable. In this episode, Ball reflects on her path from a D.C. household stacked with newspapers to leading a magazine that continues to grow in both influence and revenue. She speaks about the art of editing in an age of speed, the new language of luxury journalism, and the enduring power of a story told with precision and care. ““I loved beautiful glossy fashion and style media, but I also loved very tart writing about style and fashionable people — that eyebrow-raised, gimlet-eyed, social scorecard kind of writing that mixed elegance and critique.” - Sarah Ball Episode Highlights: On Growing Up Surrounded by Media — Raised in a Washington, D.C. household that received five newspapers a day, Sarah describes an early life shaped by constant conversation, curiosity, and the sound of pages turning. On the Early Spark — Between Capitol Hill’s newsroom corridors and stacks of Vogue and Vanity Fair, she found herself drawn to storytelling that combined politics, aesthetics, and human behavior. On Robin Givhan’s Influence — She credits Givhan’s fashion criticism for teaching her that clothing could be language — a way to read power, politics, and cultural change. On the London Years — A summer at the Associated Press covering the highs and lows of early-aughts London — from Kate Moss’s tabloid saga to art auctions and nightlife — cemented her love for culture writing. On the Golden Age of Vanity Fair — She recalls the thrill of that newsroom under Graydon Carter: “You don’t know you’re in a golden age until the golden age is over.” On Quality Over Quantity — Ball resists the speed-at-all-costs mentality of digital publishing: “If what you’re serving is reheated garbage, are you really going to keep that reader?” On The WSJ. Audience — She describes WSJ. Magazine as a luxury product with a discerning readership: “They pay a lot to access our content, therefore they expect a lot.” On Visual Storytelling — A cover, she says, must surprise: “It has to show you someone in a new light — a story and an image that feel like an experience you can’t get anywhere else.” On Video and the Future of Formats — Ball sees video — particularly conversational formats like podcasts on camera — as one of the most powerful frontiers in media: “The informality of the video podcast is replacing entire swaths of traditional television. These conversations now shape culture in real time.” On What’s Contemporary Now — For Ball, it’s humor. “A playful and unself-serious sense of humor feels most contemporary — people laughing together again, not at each other.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    46 m
  • Tish Weinstock Is an Amorphous and Contemporary It Girl
    Oct 27 2025
    Talking to Tish Weinstock offers the kind of unfiltered honesty — or, as she calls it, radical honesty — that every interviewer hopes to find in a guest. She has a unique ability to move between the frivolous and the deeply meaningful with equal parts wit and whimsy, leaving you to wonder whether she’s someone who refuses to take herself too seriously or simply someone who won’t struggle against whatever feels truthful in the moment. Whether you know her from her work as a writer, her time in front of the camera or on the runway, or simply as a familiar face at all the right parties, she’s one to watch for anyone curious about culture and the people shaping it. In a conversation that spans her early experiences with loss and grief, the chaos of her intern years, and a recent visit to a trauma retreat in America, this episode has a little something for everyone. “When I wrote that piece called I’m an intern, not an idiot and someone from upstairs came running in to tell me to take it down, that’s when I realized your words actually matter, that they can shake something even if the system doesn’t want them to.” - Tish Weinstock Episode Highlights: On early influences Tish grew up in London in a traditional home marked by early loss, gravitating to darker, sardonic heroines and art that felt surreal, spooky, and sincere. On first contact with fashion She obsessed over ad campaigns on her bedroom wall and later realized that what drew her in was storytelling through images as much as clothes. On finding the door in A chance encounter at a friend’s house led to internships at Tank and Garage where she learned the grind and took her first steps into writing. On writing as power At i-D she published I’m an intern, not an idiot and learned that words move systems even when the system pushes back. On becoming a beauty writer by accident She did not care about products at first and then noticed beauty as identity and language in a new wave of body positivity, drag, and Instagram natives. On Isamaya French and Dazed Beauty Collaborating there showed her how beauty can merge subculture, technology, and art long before the wider culture caught up. On creativity and authenticity The work sings when the obsession is real and it falls flat when the topic is traffic bait that she does not care about. On writing today Substack rekindled her love of writing as a living diary where immediacy and imperfection feel more honest than highly polished feeds. On wellness and the mind A week without a phone at a trauma program helped her reframe negative thoughts and confirmed that presence is a practice not an arrival. On what is contemporary now Radical honesty feels most alive today since culture is saturated with performance and curation and audiences are hungry for what is real. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    47 m
  • Adam Selman Tells Us Victoria’s Secret
    Oct 20 2025
    The morning after his show debut as Victoria’s Secret’s new Creative Director, Adam Selman joined me to talk through the emotions still vibrating from the night before. The conversation moved from backstage calm to creative catharsis, touching on the full-circle moment of opening the show with Jasmine Tookes, who walked his first-ever presentation years ago. This isn’t a conversation about lingerie or spectacle, it’s more about connection, leadership, and the power of joy as a design principle. Adam spoke about collaboration as communion—how designing with rather than for transforms the room—and how lessons from Rihanna, his “School of Rihanna,” continue to inform how he leads and creates today. He also shared what it means to step away and return stronger, finding the space between Adam the man and Adam the brand, and discovering how quiet became his greatest teacher. “I think joy is contemporary now. Feeling is contemporary now. Celebration is really what it’s all about.” — Adam Selman Episode Highlights: On The Morning After the Show — Recorded just hours after his Victoria’s Secret debut, Adam reflects on the calm, joy, and sense of unity that defined the show’s atmosphere. On Full-Circle Moments — Opening with Jasmine Tookes, who walked his first-ever show when he had his own brand, marked a personal and poetic return to where it all began. On Collaboration Over Command — Rather than dictating looks, Adam co-created them alongside the models, inviting input and feedback to build genuine creative connection. On Working with Carlyne Cerf — He calls their partnership effortless, built on laughter and instinct. “She finishes my sentences,” he says. On Diversity with Intention — Rejecting tokenism, he focused on authenticity: “We’re all sick of ticking boxes.” Casting was rooted in real conversation, relationships, and shared respect. On Joy as Practice — For Adam, joy isn’t decorative—it’s foundational. He sees joy as the most contemporary expression of creativity and leadership. On Learning from Rihanna — He calls his years designing with her “the School of Rihanna,” a masterclass in courage, collaboration, and cultural fluency. On Stepping Back to Move Forward — Time away from his brand gave him space to recalibrate. Through meditation and reflection, he found peace between Adam the man and Adam the brand. On The Maker’s Mindset — A lifelong builder, he’s never afraid to fix what breaks. “You can’t be afraid of it. You have to own it, make it, fix it.” On What’s Contemporary Now — For Adam, it’s joy, connection, and the courage to redefine beauty through authenticity rather than perfection. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    39 m
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