The Conversations
Honest conversations about the advice nobody gives you and the challenges nobody talks about — with mentors, artists, and industry leaders working across photography, film, image-making, curation, fashion, and writing.
We explore what it really takes to build a creative practice and career that lasts. Hosted by Roxanne Doucet and Sara Van Pée.
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Roxanne Doucet is the Creative Director and Curator behind Triptyque, a New York-based creative consultancy bridging art and commerce. With fifteen years of experience between Paris and New York, she has collaborated with leading artists, fashion houses, and cultural institutions including Dior, Loewe, and Balenciaga. In 2022, she was appointed Visuals Director at Vogue US, strengthening her influence at the intersection of art, fashion, and editorial. Known for her discerning eye in fine art and documentary photography, Roxanne champions artists' authorship and the integrity of visual storytelling. As an advocate for emerging and established creative talent, she shares her expertise through curatorial projects, portfolio strategy, and cultural programming — shaping creative practices globally with intention and clarity.
Photography, Visual Direction
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Sara Van Pée is a multidisciplinary creative, and founder of Substance Paris. With over a decade of experience in fashion styling, art direction, and journalism, she has collaborated with leading luxury houses and crafted meaningful narratives for brands at the forefront of ethical transformation. A former editor-in-chief and creative director, Sara has an instinct for weaving storytelling, aesthetics, and consciousness into impactful editorial and visual projects. Her practice spans from print to podcast, from creative writing to visual arts. With a strong grounding in mindfulness, craftsmanship, and ecological awareness, she bridges creativity and purpose—offering both clients and audiences a new way to engage with beauty, art, and self-expression.
Fashion Image, Sustainability
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Jessica Lee Gagné is an Emmy-nominated director and cinematographer from Montreal, known for her elegant cinematic vision and poetic storytelling. Her work has premiered at Cannes, Berlinale, and other major festivals, and has been praised by The New York Times, Vanity Fair, and Variety. She gained wide recognition for her cinematography on Showtime’s Escape at Dannemora, directed by Ben Stiller and starring Patricia Arquette, who thanked her during her Golden Globe win. Jessica went on to shoot Mrs. America (FX) with Cate Blanchett and directors Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck. She reunited with Stiller for Apple TV+’s Severance, earning two prestigious Emmy nominations for her groundbreaking work on Season Two — one for Outstanding Cinematography and one for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for her directorial debut. She is currently developing her first feature film.
Directing, Cinematography
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Pierre-Yves Morvan is a French Creative Director with over a decade of experience shaping the visual language of luxury, fashion, and contemporary culture. With a practice rooted in image-making, internet culture, and editorial storytelling, Pierre-Yves is known for translating cultural relevance into resonant brand narratives that go far beyond aesthetics. From 2019 to 2025, he played a pivotal role in establishing Dazed Studio as a global creative powerhouse. As Executive Creative Director, he led 360° campaigns, cultural strategies, and special projects for some of the world’s most influential brands—including Gucci, Burberry, H&M, Nike, Instagram, and Maison Margiela. He also spearheaded the launch and creative expansion of Dazed Studio in the US, cementing its vision and presence across international markets. He recently launched his own creative studio and continues to share his distinct sensibility globally.
Creative Direction
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Marie Geneviève Cyr is a globally recognized Creative Director and Fashion Education Leader with over 25 years of experience at the intersection of fashion, technology, and culture. Former Director of the BFA Fashion Design program at Parsons School of Design, she has led transformative initiatives across Asia, Europe, and North America, collaborating with institutions such as China Academy of Art, CHAVÓN La Escuela de Diseño, and the Royal College of Art. A sought-after speaker, she engages at summits, museums, and universities internationally, shaping critical conversations on post-internet aesthetics, mindful design, and sustainability, including the WWD China Global Fashion Sustainability Summit in Shanghai. She has hosted talks with visionaries such as Ryan Murphy, Zac Posen, Tory Burch, and Casey Cadwallader. With mindfulness and radical creativity, she is now redefining the future of the fashion ecosystem with Marie Geneviève Cyr Consulting.
Fashion Design, Education
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Laure Gouraige is a French writer whose debut novel La Fille du Père (P.O.L, 2020) was shortlisted for the prestigious Prix Médicis. She has since published three books, and in 2026 will be hosted by the Jules Verne Writing Residency (Ohio State University) and Villa Albertine in the American Midwest, where she will give lectures on the process of creative writing and her journey as an author at universities across the region. Alongside her literary career, Laure has been shaping the written identity of luxury brands since 2014, collaborating with houses such as Chanel, Dior, L’Artisan Parfumeur, among others. With the same attention to language that guides her novels, she brings a refined, poetic sensibility to her collaborations with luxury brands, crafting narratives that unite literary depth and craftsmanship with subtle elegance.
Creative Writing, Copywriting
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Noémie Al Homsi is Franco Syrian menswear designer. Now taking part in shaping the menswear at Stüssy, she draws on extensive experience at LEMAIRE for Uniqlo U, COS, Fred Perry, Mugler, where she refined her mastery of construction, fabric innovation, and production. Her work is defined by a precise eye for proportion and contemporary silhouettes. Beyond her professional practice, Noemie is developing Hone, a personal textile project dedicated to exploring materiality and experimental fabric techniques, reflecting her commitment to quality and timeless design.
Menswear Design
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Marie Nahon is a French-born creative producer based in Los Angeles. After starting her career as a model and photographer, she built a successful path in entertainment marketing—producing large-scale campaigns for luxury brands and creating assets for Disney, Hulu, and ABC while collaborating with some of the industry’s most recognized talent. Her AI-driven studio production company, Science studio, is a creative hub that blends technology, storytelling, and design to shape the future of content. The studio focuses on developing innovative formats at the intersection of cinema, marketing, and interactive experiences, reflecting her passion for both artistic vision and forward-thinking entrepreneurship.
Creative Production, AI content
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Françoise Cournoyer is a creative director and designer whose work explores the space between emotion, identity, and design. With roots in fashion and advertising, she is now an Associate Creative Director at Apple, leading global design for Retail Engagement and Marketing. Her work focuses on connecting people through design systems, storytelling, and the intersection of creativity and technology. She is originally from Montréal and currently based in New York.
Creative Direction, Design
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Hannah Gottlieb-Graham is the President and Founder of ALMA, an award-winning public relations, communications, and design agency in New York City — operating at the intersection of contemporary art, architecture, performance, and social change. Formerly Director of Communications at the Aperture Foundation, and editorial roles at The New Yorker and Surface Magazine. A dancer turned photographer, editor, and publicist — she brings a rare fluency across multiple creative disciplines. Co-Chair of The Guggenheim's Young Collectors Council and Performa's Visionaries Group. She holds degrees in Photography, Contemporary Art, and Dance from The University of Oxford and Sarah Lawrence College.
Public Relations
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Clément Bénech is a French novelist, essayist, editor, and journalist celebrated for his subtle irony and incisive observation. After studies in Berlin via Erasmus and a master’s on Édouard Levé at Bordeaux-Montaigne, he published his first novel, L’Été slovène (Flammarion, 2013), followed by Lève-toi et charme and Un amour d’espion. His essays, including Une essentielle fragilité – le roman à l’ère de l’image (Plein Jour, 2019), reflect on literature in a media-saturated world. Recognized by Vanity Fair as one of “30 Éclaireurs who will shape France,” he has contributed to Libération, Marianne, and the NRF, collaborated with Albin Michel, Rivages, and Stock, and performs stand-up blending wit with literary insight. His latest novel, Un vrai dépaysement (Flammarion), was widely acclaimed by critics.
Creative Writing, Editing
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Tasha Young is a multimedia artist who integrates writing, research, design, and music in her creative practice. Originally from Portland, Maine, Tasha has lived and worked in Montreal, New York City, Los Angeles, Paris, London, and Berlin. As the founder of œvra, she blends research, writing, and experiential design to create an immersive, distraction-free portal for creative flow. Her practice is defined by her heightened perceptual sensitivity — from synesthesia (visions of sound) to an attentive, observational presence.Her novella, Static Flux, was published in 2018, and her personal essays and cultural criticism have been featured in major publications like Dazed, BOMB, Artforum, and more.
Creative Writing. Brand Strategy
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Marine Buffard is a Paris-based illustrator, visual artist, animator, and creative strategist whose practice is centered around elegant line work and a bold use of color. Her work spans visual storytelling and culturally driven brand strategy, blending illustration with insight-led creative direction across editorial and commercial projects. She has worked internationally with leading clients including The New York Times, The New Yorker, Hermès, Apple and Bon Appétit. Her work has been featured in publications such as Wrap Magazine, Support Magazine, and It’s Nice That, and exhibited at venues including La Gaîté Lyrique and La Rotonde in Paris.
Design, Illustration, Animation
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Holly Hay is a London-based Image Director known for her work with leading global brands and magazines. Formerly Photography Director at Wallpaper* and AnOther Magazine, she now leads creative projects through her agency, ANNIKA. Her collaborations include Dover Street Market, Belmond, Fernando Jorge, Hermès, Stella McCartney, Graff, Uniqlo, Nonfiction Beauty, Phaidon, USM, IKEA, Brian O'Sullivan Studio, Marsèll, To My Ships, Magnum Photos, and Port Magazine, among others. ANNIKA delivers visual strategy, art buying, curation, creative ideation, art direction, and production for campaigns and content across print, digital, exhibitions, and publishing.
Image Direction
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Giorgia Basch is a curator, publisher, art director, and art historian based in Milan. Founding Director of BilderAtlas — an interdisciplinary studio, gallery, and publishing house where photography sits at the intersection of arts, culture, and fashion. Formerly Head of Editorial at i-D and Global Image Director at Jil Sander, producing acclaimed campaigns with Larry Fink and Wim Wenders. Her most recent publication, Personal Ads by Pippa Garner, was shortlisted for the Paris Photo/Aperture PhotoBook Awards and included in the Elles x Paris Photo programme. She teaches Visual Cultures and Curatorial Practices at Istituto Marangoni and IED Visual Arts in Milan.
Curation. Publishing, Art Direction
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Johanna Benaïnous is a visual artist, photographer, and filmmaker. A graduate of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and trained at the School of Visual Arts in New York, she has developed a practice at the intersection of photography, video, and scenography. Co-founder of the artistic duo Elsa & Johanna since 2014, she explores questions of identity, narrative, and fiction within everyday life alongside Elsa Parra. Their work has been exhibited in France and internationally.
Photography
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Stephen Ellcock is a writer, visual curator, and cultural researcher whose widely followed “cabinet of curiosities” has captivated an audience of over half a million people worldwide. Author of several acclaimed Thames & Hudson books, including The Cosmic Dance, Underworlds, and Elements, his work weaves together art, mythology, science, and spirituality to reveal unexpected connections and invite a deeper sense of wonder and imagination. His forthcoming book Ark is a major visual treasury celebrating the living world, bringing together over 600 images exploring the beauty, diversity, and fragility of nature.
Image Curation