We had the chance to talk to Lexii about how she manifested herself as a superhero (or sexy villain?), the merits of weird art people dinners, empowering sex workers to choose their battles, and much more.
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We were excited to pick Professor Mindy Seu’s brain, as full of associations and asides as a Wikipedia page is loaded with hyperlinks, touching on everything from resistance training to how minds work to the effects growing up in a conservative household had on her sexuality to her love of Dries van Noten — read on for all this and more.
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Lexie Smith is an artist and baker presently based in upstate New York who spends a lot of time researching, thinking about, and making bread. She runs the online resource center Bread on Earth, which explores bread’s “potential as a social, political, economic, and ecological barometer.” In this interview, she shares her favorite spots for pastries, bagels, and loaves in New York City, as well as a variety of books and resources for learning more about bread and grains.
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We spoke with designer and archivist Jenn Park about her early love for Marc Jacobs/Juergen Teller ads, her recent success tracking down a lost documentary after a 15-year search, and how she treats her phone as a hard drive.
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Esthetician Raquel Medina-Cleghorn’s music preferences have traced her journey from San Diego to Portland back to San Diego to her eventual arrival in New York, with early interests in punk giving way to a love of electroclash and shoegaze. Here, she shares the songs associated with some of her strongest memories, from rebellious hair-spiking makeovers with her childhood best friend all the way to her wedding day.
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We chatted with home aide Siraba Coulibaly about her self-made business, the shocking truths she has to face as someone who often cares for people near the ends of their lives, her favorite colors to wear to make her skin tone pop, and more.
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Ethaney Lee is a vibrant, compelling content creator on Instagram, where as @tenderherbs, she cooks and shares meals that look as beautiful as they seem delicious. We spoke to Ethaney about her procrastination problems, why she doesn’t take food pics on dates, her everlasting devotion to tumblr, and much more.
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We had the chance to speak with Maria about her nearly-50-year-long career in nursing, her discerning tastes in fashion and filets, her eye-opening philosophies of life informed by working so close to death, and more.
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We chatted with Danny about her unexpected path to fighting (she took a detour in musical theater that taught her a different kind of strength), her non-parent-approved tattoos, the importance of learning how to not get hit, being a constant for her clients, and much more.
Read MoreWe had the chance to talk to Zari about her work in addiction medicine and academic detailing, her ad hoc approach to connecting with her Iranian heritage, and how newfound community in NYC has given her the feeling of “home” for the first time in her life.
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Cheesemaker, farmer, and clinical psychologist Tamara Jo Hicks talked to us about growing up in Oklahoma, her great-grandmother’s chocolate cake, the art of making cheeseboards, and more.
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We spoke with writer and professor McKenzie Wark about her punk-soundtracked pathway to academia, rave strategies to keep you on the floor no matter your age or the hour of the day, and the manual labor being a writer entails.
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In this conversation, artist and designer Ana Kraš shares thoughts on her childhood in Belgrade marked by war, her luxuriously simple approach to beauty and fashion, and how she, as a self-professed “homebody,” creates an inspiring space in which to spend her days.
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Katie Merchant’s creative eye is applied to the photography she shares on her prolific Instagram account, @thankyou_ok, but also to her work as a creative director and stylist for brands such as Glossier, Babaà and Marimekko that share her penchant for nostalgia filtered through a lens of romance that recalls the films of Jacques Demy or Éric Rohmer. Here, we speak to Katie about capturing moments of serendipitous beauty on an iPhone, the opposite of buyer’s remorse (regret for a purchase unmade), and women she’s inspired by, from Miss Piggy to Martha Stewart.
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Olivia Villanti’s appreciation for the understated romance of everyday gestures is woven into the simple but studied clothing made by Chava Studio, the atelier she founded in San Miguel Chapultepec, Mexico City. Here, she shares with us how a childhood steeped in dance translated into a textured perspective on clothing as an agent of movement, life as an expat, and much more.
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Niat is a lawyer who moved to the US in the early 2010s from Ethiopia’s conflict-torn Tigray region. Marked early by social and political injustice, her childhood and upbringing caused Niat to embark on a legal career that focuses on immigration, human rights, and gender-related issues — fields that have taught her much about our shared human experience. We speak about the traumatic experiences that sparked her professional ambitions, activism, and what lasting effect the ongoing conflict in her home country has had on her life and sense of self.
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Postal worker DeNeita Watson is most likely to be spotted on the road — her daily 9-mile walking route through Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood, to be exact. After growing up with a single mother in South Carolina and having not one, but two children straight out of high school, she moved over ten years ago to take advantage of her familial support system in the city and leave behind memories of a destructive relationship. DeNeita talks to us about early motherhood, the physical ramifications of her job, and how her fashion sense has evolved over the years.
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Meryanne Loum-Martin’s morning commute is likely the most picturesque of any passerby to date: having made her permanent home in Marrakesh after spending much of her childhood on the go as the daughter of a diplomat, she now walks past palm trees on her way to the office. We talk to Meryanne about her definition of home, the importance of independence in marriage, and why, for her, staying intellectually challenged is the key to youth and happiness.
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Costume designer Miyako Bellizzi, the brain behind the character-defining looks for movies like Uncut Gems, Good Time, or HBO’s hit show Scenes from a Marriage, sees her role as “cultural anthropologist with a specialization in clothing.” Born in the Bay Area, Miyako moved to NYC 15 years ago to embark on a multi-faceted career across film, tv, editorial, and print that is marked by patience and her DIY attitude. We speak to the fashion maven about growing up in a family of stylish women, her research process, and home-made beauty remedies.
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If you’ve ever read one of Naomi Fry’s pieces for The New Yorker — or follow her on social media, for that matter — you know that her sense of humor and ability to curate culture into text (from highbrow art all the way to reality tv) is unparalleled. In our conversation, she speaks about growing up across two continents, the financial aspects of raising a family in NYC, and why she’ll never quite feel a sense of belonging in America.
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