‘He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches.’

So Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw disparagingly declared in his 1903 play, Man and Superman.

It’s a shame he never got to read the conversation our athletic cover star Juergen Teller recently had with curator Hans Ulrich Obrist. While Hans Ulrich explains how he’s convinced Google to sponsor an entire generation of bright young artists, Juergen reveals why teaching Bavarian photography students on a hangover (him and them) is the perfect antidote to shooting luxury advertising campaigns. Mr Teller’s first lesson: Love life.

It makes for a heady and inspiring read.

So much so that teaching subsequently became a central theme in this issue of System. From Karl Lagerfeld sharing his encyclopædic knowledge of pre-First World War caricaturists to Warhol’s right-hand man Bob Colacello’s lively history lesson in what made the 1980s America’s last great decade (clue: Ronald Reagan and after-hours dive bars).

Even Donatella Versace dusts off her black cape and mortar board to reveal how she taught Madonna and Lady Gaga everything they know.

And if that isn’t convincing enough, simply peruse Juergen’s wonderfully giddy pictures of his students in situ. So deliciously upbeat, so infectiously fun, they represent the best university prospectus you’re never likely to see. We’re confident Mr Shaw would have disapproved.