FIRST WORD a letter from the publisher
pose). Throughout the story, there aren’t any shots of him looking at the camera. That was intentional. He said he wanted to withhold part of himself in the photo shoot, because in the story he was so open. The eyes are powerful, and he loved the idea of the story having
Doing It by Design
HE WANTED TO WITHHOLD PART OF HIMSELF IN THE PHOTO SHOOT, BECAUSE IN THE STORY HE WAS SO OPEN. THE EYES
conceptual contrast: The mystery of the man
ARE POWERFUL, AND
in the photos, the transparency of the man in
HE LOVED THE IDEA
the conversation. That’s why Fear of God is unique. Every piece Jerry creates, even down to when and
OF THE STORY HAVING CONCEPTUAL CONTRAST:
how it’s released, has intentionality behind it.
THE MYSTERY OF THE
Most people in fashion are striving to be
MAN IN THE PHOTOS,
the Next Big Thing. The problem with that is the industry will chew you up and spit you
THE TRANSPARENCY
out. Jerry is playing outside the lines, doing
OF THE MAN IN THE
things differently with the goal of longevity.
CONVERSATION.
Trailblazers, disrupters and world-
W
hen you read our cover
changers don’t happen by accident. They’re
story with trendsetter Jerry
people that see things differently. They don’t
Lorenzo on page 56, you’re
accept how things are; they think about how
going to notice something: His
they could be. And they go after it without
label, Fear of God, is full-on
compromise.
luxury—but there’s a unique
Sure, there’s resistance at every turn.
purposefulness to the high-end brand and
People like things to be familiar. When
almost every aspect of his life.
someone comes along wanting to turn things
Jerry is one of the biggest names in fashion right now, but he’s an outspoken Christian,
on their head, there’s inevitable pushback. Even with our photo shoot. We love taking
getting up at 5:30 every morning to spend time
creative risks in the magazine, but there
in the Word.
was internal debate among the RELEVANT
With Fear of God, he ferociously protects
team about having a cover story shot so
doing things his way instead of accepting the
unusually. It feels more behind-the-scenes
industry’s norms. He is a visionary and, as you’ll
than your typical portrait shoot. Will people
see in the story, thinks over every detail.
understand the underlying visual message?
There’s even a deeper reason he goes by Lorenzo, his middle name, instead of his family name, Manuel. Nothing about his life is
But Jerry had a vision for the piece, and we bought in. It’s a lesson for all of us, no matter
arbitrary. It’s a fascinating story and as you’re
what industry we’re a part of. We all have
reading it, you might even sense a deeper
opportunities to color outside the lines,
thoughtfulness in how it’s portrayed.
refuse to accept the status quo and rethink
Jerry is known for doing very little media, but was extremely transparent in the interview with
what could be. We might not all be a Jerry Lorenzo,
us, welcoming us to his Los Angeles studio and
launching an industry-changing brand.
sharing very personal details about his story
But we all can learn from those who do,
and faith.
applying the same sort of thoughtfulness
But then for the photo shoot, he wanted an air of mystery. You’ll notice he’s partially covering his face on the cover (not our usual
MAR-APR
and purposefulness to whatever it is God has called us to do. In everything we do, let’s do it by design.
014
C A MER ON S T R A NG Founder & Publisher
2019
