Naked Beauty – "The Eye Has to Travel: Lessons From My Creative Ancestors"

Host: Brooke DeVard
Air Date: January 5, 2026

Episode Overview

Brooke DeVard opens the first episode of the new year with an honest reflection on fatigue, overstimulation, and a desire for depth, moving away from typical New Year’s messages of work and productivity. Instead, she introduces her “creative board of directors”—inspirational creative ancestors whose words and lives offer guidance, perspective, and sustenance in challenging times. Rather than doling out practical advice, DeVard shares wisdom from figures including Diana Vreeland, André Leon Talley, Andy Warhol, Zora Neale Hurston, Walt Whitman, and Thich Nhat Hanh.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Rejecting the Productivity Hamster Wheel (00:00–05:10)

• Brooke starts by acknowledging the collective exhaustion and resistance to "hustle culture" at the top of the new year.

“I know a lot of us love the new year. It's a fresh start, a blank page. But many of us... feel very tired, disillusioned, even overstimulated… is this really it?” (00:18)

• She shifts from a planned episode about discipline and work ethic, choosing instead to offer “perspective” through inspiration from creative ancestors.

2. The Role of Creative Ancestors (05:11–08:37)

• Brooke believes in cultivating relationships with creative “ancestors”—not necessarily family or people she knows, but legendary figures she has studied deeply.
• These are individuals whose words, choices, and creativity offer enduring life lessons.

3. Lessons from Diana Vreeland – “The Eye Has to Travel” (08:38–18:25)

Who: Legendary editor at Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue.

• The importance of “training your eye”:
  “The eye has to travel… your eye, your taste, your sensibility… it sharpens by seeing things. You have to stretch yourself.” (09:46)
• Taste is cultivated, not innate:
  “Taste isn’t something that you’re born with… you build up over time, through exposure, through diversity, and through stretching yourself.” (11:35)
• Warning against algorithmic sameness:
  “We live in this era where our eyes don’t really travel anymore beyond what is fed to us by algorithms... That is not working out the muscle of having interesting taste and an interesting point of view.” (13:00)
• Brooke’s personal application:
  • Taking solo dates for creative inspiration (even if only once a month)
  • Making an effort to see new art and engage with unfamiliar ideas
• Notable Quotes:
  “Don’t be boring, don’t be predictable, don’t be stale. Being interesting takes practice.” (15:45)
  “You don’t have to be born beautiful to be wildly attractive.” (16:09)
• Connection to her own birth:

  “Diana died August 1989. I was born August 1989. So we overlapped on Earth for two weeks… that's always felt very symbolic to me.” (17:45)

4. André Leon Talley – The Power of Grandeur (18:26–22:45)

Who: Fashion editor, historian, and protégé of Diana Vreeland.

• On making space for yourself:
  “Grandeur is a form of self-respect.” (19:45)
• Talley’s impact:
  • Encouraged never shrinking one’s presence to make others comfortable.
  • Celebrated for depth, intellect, and refusing to simplify or diminish himself in spaces that might not have been ready for him.
  • “He always reminds me that depth is still power. Even though we’re in this era where algorithms reward quick hits and hot takes. Having depth, there’s no substitute for that.” (21:50)

5. Andy Warhol – Blurring Creativity and Commerce (22:46–28:19)

Who: Iconic artist, pop culture impresario, and thinker.

• Commerce is not the enemy of creativity:

  “Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art… making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art.” (24:30, quoting Warhol)

• Brooke's take:
  • She doesn’t fully subscribe to capitalism, but believes that creative and commercial pursuits can “amplify each other when done consciously.”
  • On brand deals: “How can I make this commercial thing that I know I have to do rise to the level of the art I would create anyway?” (26:35)
• Influencer culture:
  • Warhol’s relevance to the creator economy, personal branding, and the balance between working fast and maintaining meaning.

6. Zora Neale Hurston – The Fierce Defense of Joy (28:20–34:59)

Who: Celebrated Black writer and anthropologist.

• On discrimination and self-worth:

  “Sometimes I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It’s beyond me.” (29:13, quoting Hurston)

• Hurston’s approach as resistance:
  • Refusing to define oneself by others’ prejudice.
  • “No, I do not weep at the world. I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife.” (31:50, Hurston’s essay “How it Feels to Be Colored Me”)
• Brooke’s reflection:

  “She’s not rehearsing her pain. She’s honing her ability to extract nourishment from life. And to me, that’s power.” (33:12)

7. Walt Whitman – Embracing Complexity and Presence (35:00–40:55)

Who: Poet and transcendentalist.

• Collapsing the boundaries between self and nature:
  • “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey work of the stars.” (35:55, “Song of Myself”)
  • “I exist as I am, and that is enough. I celebrate myself and I sing myself.” (36:15)
• Embracing contradictions:

  “Do I contradict myself? Very well, then, I contradict myself. I am large. I contain multitudes." (37:50, “Song of Myself”)

• Life lesson:
  • Being alive means being flexible, expansive, and willing to change—coherence is overrated.

8. Thich Nhat Hanh – Mindfulness and Presence (40:56–49:40)

Who: Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk and teacher.

• Happiness is not a destination:

  “We believe that happiness will come to us when our conditions are perfect. But the perfect conditions do not exist. If we cannot be happy now, we will never be happy. Happiness is not a destination. It’s a way of traveling.” (44:15, paraphrased)

• On busy-ness:

  “People are busy all the time… believing that doing more will make them happy. But if you are not present, even success will not satisfy you. Without mindfulness, life passes by like a dream.” (45:30)

• The dangers of perpetual rushing:

  “Hurrying damages ourselves and it damages our capacity to live deeply.” (47:20)

• On silence and discomfort with stillness:

  “Many people keep themselves busy because they are afraid to be with themselves. Silence can be uncomfortable. Stillness can bring up things we do not want to face. So we fill our lives with noise, plans, and activity.” (48:23)

• Brooke’s summary:

  “If you’re not present, you can’t enjoy what you’ve achieved… we trade the only moment we actually have for this imagined future that's never really going to arrive.” (49:01)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Diana Vreeland:

  “The eye has to travel.” (09:46)
  “Don’t be boring, don’t be predictable, don’t be stale. Being interesting takes practice.” (15:45)
  “You don’t have to be born beautiful to be wildly attractive.” (16:09)

• André Leon Talley:

  “Grandeur is a form of self-respect.” (19:45)
  “Depth is still power… Having depth, there’s no substitute for that.” (21:50)

• Andy Warhol:

  “Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art… good business is the best art.” (24:30)

• Zora Neale Hurston:

  “Sometimes I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It’s beyond me.” (29:13)
  “No, I do not weep at the world. I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife.” (31:50)

• Walt Whitman:

  “I exist as I am, and that is enough. I celebrate myself and I sing myself.” (36:15)
  “Do I contradict myself? Very well, then, I contradict myself. I am large. I contain multitudes.” (37:50)

• Thich Nhat Hanh:

  “Happiness is not a destination. It’s a way of traveling.” (44:15)

Important Timestamps

• 00:00: Brooke's raw reflections on the pressures of New Year’s culture.
• 08:38: Lessons from Diana Vreeland—“The eye has to travel.”
• 18:26: Remembering André Leon Talley and the lesson of grandeur.
• 22:46: Andy Warhol’s perspective on commerce and creativity.
• 28:20: The fierce joy and resilience of Zora Neale Hurston.
• 35:00: Walt Whitman, contradictions, and celebrating the self.
• 40:56: Thich Nhat Hanh on happiness, mindfulness, and the perils of busyness.

Tone & Closing

Brooke’s tone is warm, honest, and gently inspiring. She is unfiltered about her own struggles with fatigue and distraction, yet lifts the listener up with quotes and anecdotes from her creative ancestors. She concludes by encouraging the audience to enter 2026 with ease, stay curious, and embrace their multitudes—reminding listeners that true beauty and creativity require perspective, joy, depth, and presence.

“As you walk into 2026, I want you to do it with ease. Acknowledge the perfection of this present moment and relish in this season of your life… To every single person listening, I'm sending you so much love. Thank you for being here.” (End)