Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud

Jonathan Anderson is a Northern Irish designer. He founded his eponymous label JW Anderson in 2008 and has, gone on to become one of the most prolific and highly, regarded people in world of high fashion. He is the Creative Director of the Spanish luxury goods brand Loewe. He also creates extremely successful collaborations with the high street, brand Uniqlo. He has been working with the film maker Luca Guadagnino, creating costumes for the director’s last two films ‘Challengers’ with Zendaya and Josh O’Connor, and ‘Queer’ starring Daniel Craig. In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Jonathan Anderson and Bella Freud discuss perfection and how his own feeling of imperfection is a driver to create beauty and romance for others; how he finds his references in art for the film costumes he has created; and how attractive and sexy it is when someone is able to draw.

Portrait: David Sims

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Es Devlin is a British artist and stage designer celebrated for creating large-scale, emotionally resonant installations and performances that fuse light, music, language, and space. Her work has shaped the visual identity of global tours for artists including Beyoncé, Adele, The Weeknd and U2, while also redefining the theatrical landscape through her work with the Royal Opera House, National Theatre, and the Metropolitan Opera. Es Devlin brings a poetic sensibility to her immersive environments. Her public art installations—such as Forest for Change at Somerset House and Poem Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai—invite audiences to reflect, explore, and engage with urgent global themes. In October 2024 she unveiled CONGREGATION, a large-scale choral installation created in partnership with UK for UNHCR, The Courtauld and King's College London. Es Devlin’s designs have been exhibited at major institutions including the V&A, the Serpentine Gallery, and the Venice Biennale. She is a Royal Academician, the recipient of numerous awards, and was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to stage design.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Es Devlin discuss the logistics of raising a steel orb out of the sand in the Moroccan desert for the St Laurent menswear show; seeking out jumble sales in Time Out magazine when she was 11; and making a collage for her bedroom from a catalogue of Japanese art that turned out to be full of pornographic illustrations.

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Marina Abramović is one of the most influential and groundbreaking performance artists of our time. Born in Belgrade, Serbia, she has spent over five decades pushing the limits of the mind, body, and spirit through art. Known for her extreme and often controversial performances, Abramović uses endurance, pain, vulnerability, and direct audience interaction to explore themes of identity. During her most celebrated artistic performance 'The Artist Is Present' at the Museum of Modern Art in 2010, she sat silently across from museum visitors for over 700 hours, creating powerful, wordless connections with almost a million strangers. Marina Abramović has also worked extensively to preserve and teach performance art, founding the Marina Abramović Institute, which focuses on long-durational performance and interdisciplinary collaboration. Her legacy continues to influence artists, thinkers, and audiences worldwide.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Marina Abramović discuss how happiness is not conducive to making great art; climaxing as a required element of a performance; and how 80 is too young for her to make a documentary about her life.

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Susie Cave is a British model and fashion designer. Her career started when she was scouted on holiday in New York by the famous model agent Bethann Hardison, who immediately sent her to Steven Meisel - his advice being to go back to school as she was only 14 years old. Her striking beauty and ethereal presence quickly earned her a place in high fashion campaigns and on magazine covers including more recently a Gucci perfume campaign and the cover of Another Magazine in 2020. In 2015 Susie launched her fashion brand The Vampire's Wife which became known for its blend of gothic and romantic aesthetics. Vogue described her immediately recognisable dress as the 'It dress' and The Vampire's Wife quickly gained a devoted following, attracting celebrities from Florence Welch, Cate Blanchett, and Kate, Princess of Wales among its clientele. Susie’s designs are a reflection of her own personal style—romantic, mysterious, and deeply artistic—cementing her as a distinctive voice in the fashion industry. She is married to Nick Cave, the lead singer of The Bad Seeds.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Susie Cave and Bella Freud discuss how she was talent scouted by the legendary Bethann Hardison and her meeting with Steven Meisel age 14; the first time she saw her husband-to-be Nick Cave at one of Bella’s shows; and how grief can be channelled through creativity.

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Graydon Carter is a celebrated Canadian journalist, editor, and cultural commentator best known for his 25 years as the Editor of Vanity Fair. Born in Toronto, Graydon Carter began his career in journalism in Canada where he co-founded Spy magazine in 1986. The satirical monthly became famous for its sharp, irreverent take on media, politics, and celebrity culture, establishing him as a critical voice in American media. In 1992, Graydon Carter became the editor at Vanity Fair, transforming the magazine into a powerhouse of long-form journalism, celebrity profiles, and cultural commentary. Under his leadership Vanity Fair became known for its investigative reporting - breaking a number of key political scandals; also the much anticipated photographic spreads and covers featuring Hollywood stars, shot by the legendary photographer Annie Liebovitz. Graydon Carter stepped down from Vanity Fair in 2017, founding Air Mail, a digital weekly aimed at worldly readers interested in culture, politics, and style. With his signature wit and curatorial flair, he has published his memoir 'When The Going Was Good' with author James Fox.

In this episode of Fashion Neurosis, Bella Freud and Graydon Carter discuss the joys of ironing, creating desirable trinkets for people to 'take home' from the Vanity Fair party, and whether it was Aerosmith's Steve Tyler, or Kate Moss who actually said 'nothing tastes like skinny feels.'

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