FROM THE MAGAZINE

Meet The Contributors Behind Our 2021 Pop Issue Covers

These dynamic creatives made our cover stories with Emma Corrin, Beanie Feldstein, Thuso Mbedu and Julia Garner come to life.

by W Staff
Updated: 
Originally Published: 

Renell Medrano.
Courtesy of Renell Medrano.

Renell Medrano

Photographer, “Julia Garner Is Criminally Good

Which TV show have you watched over and over again?

Sons of Anarchy, and my favorite message from that show is “I got this.” I actually ended up getting that quote tattooed on my arm as a constant reminder.

Who is your favorite pop culture icon?

Omahyra Mota Garcia. I identify with her because she is Dominican, like me, and channeled a very fearless attitude in her photos, with a balance of masculine and feminine energy.

Who is inspiring you creatively these days?

I’m my own mood board.

Courtesy of Harry Lambert.

Harry Lambert

Stylist, “The Education of Emma Corrin

Who is inspiring you creatively these days?

Jonathan Anderson, Marco Ribeiro, Harris Reed, S.S. Daley, Sara Berman, and the fashions of the singer Celeste, who’s styled by Ella Lucia.

What kind of energy are you channeling this fall?

Chaotic cocktail drinking.

Who is your favorite pop culture icon?

Britney Spears. Hers was the first record I bought; she brings me so much happiness. Britney has given so much to the world. She is a music and fashion icon.

Abigail F.B. Patterson.

Troy Patterson

Writer, “Thuso Mbedu is Just Getting Started

If you could have any look in the history of fashion, what would it be?

Robert Redford’s in Three Days of the Condor, with its urbane prep zest and cozy trad textures.

What kind of energy are you channeling this fall?

Recently, a neighbor paid my 10-year-old son a compliment on his comportment. “He’s cool,” she said. “Not cool like hip. He’s just…alert but loose.” This is my mantra for autumn: alert but loose.

Who is your favorite pop culture icon?

The hip-hop hero and multidisciplinary cool cat born Fred Brathwaite—Fab 5 Freddy! An excellent connector possessed of endless elegance. In 1991, Susan Orlean described him as “the coolest person in New York”; three decades later, the city has no challenger to his throne.

Courtesy of Inez & Vinoodh.

Inez & Vinoodh

Photographers, “Beanie Feldstein Is More Than Your Bestie

Who is your favorite pop culture icon?

Lady Gaga. She’s one of a kind, a true artist, in the broadest sense of the word.

Which TV show or episode have you watched over and over again? Any favorite quotes?

Schitt’s Creek; anything that comes out of Dan Levy’s mouth.

Which TV character do you think has the best style?

Dolores, from Westworld. “Sci-fi machine dressed as 19th-century rancher’s daughter” could be a Vivienne Westwood collection.

If you could have any look in the history of fashion, what would it be?

Romy Schneider’s Chanel evening suit from Boccaccio 70.

Courtesy of Lacy Redway.

Lacy Redway

Hairstylist, “Thuso Mbedu is Just Getting Started

Who is your favorite pop culture icon?

I have the utmost respect for Beyoncé. We have the same zodiac sign, so I identify with her drive and work ethic.

Which TV character do you think has the best style?

Tracee Ellis Ross as Joan Carol Clayton in Girlfriends. Always so effortlessly chic.

What kind of energy are you channeling this fall?

Peace. It’s really important for me not to lose all of the self-work I’ve gotten to do during lockdown. As the pace has picked up, I’ve tried to remind myself to slow down and continue finding a balance between home and work.

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