{"id":815,"date":"2019-01-29T15:33:01","date_gmt":"2019-01-29T14:33:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.maike.at\/?p=815"},"modified":"2026-02-09T17:52:35","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T16:52:35","slug":"kevyn-aucoin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maike.at\/en\/kevyn-aucoin\/","title":{"rendered":"Makeup Art History: Kevyn Aucoin"},"content":{"rendered":"

I would like to introduce you to some makeup artists that have permanently changed the way we do makeup. Yes, even before Instagram, filters and facetune, artists were working hard and creatively.<\/p>\n

I am reading the book “Making Faces<\/a>” right now, so it seems logical to start with Kevyn Aucoin.<\/p>\n

Early Life: Kevyn Aucoin<\/h2>\n

Kevyn Aucoin was born in 1962 in Louisiana, USA and also grew up in this area. He was adopted by his parents at a very young age. His two sisters and one brother were also adopted.<\/p>\n

Even at a young age Aucoin was very interested in makeup. He would often do his sister’s makeup and take polaroid pictures (100 points if you still know polaroids \ud83d\ude09 ) of it.<\/p>\n

He dropped out of High School, because he was being bullied for his homosexuality. At an age of 18 he worked in a store where women could get there makeup done, however in 1980 it was a very different time and these clients did not want a man doing their makeup.<\/p>\n

At 20 years old he moved to Baton Rouge, which is also in Louisiana, but after he was attacked by a security member, he decided this area was no longer safe for him and he decided to move to New York.<\/p>\n

Beginning of Aucoin’s Career<\/h2>\n

Like most makeup artists, Aucoin started out doing photoshoots for test models. This is still a great way to start in the industry! One day he was discovered by Vogue and from that day onwards, he worked almost daily with a photographer called Steven Meisel (his work<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Revlon Ultima II Line<\/h2>\n

So at only 20 years old, after 1.5 years in the industry, Aucoin became the Creative Director for the Revlon Ultima II Line. This makeup concept was something very special, as back then you could only find makeup products for EITHER light skin OR dark skin. This unique makeup line combined the two and was the first to offer products suitable for all skin tones. 1983 was more of a time for bright and loud colors, but Aucoin created more neutral and muted tones.<\/p>\n

The Ultima II Line was one of the first brands that offered foundations with a yellow undertone. Until then, most of the foundations were all red-based. That sounds crazy now!<\/p>\n

Kevyn Aucoin’s style was always more natural. He didn’t believe in hiding beauty with multiple layers of makeup. He underlined the existing beauty.<\/p>\n

Height of his career<\/h2>\n

In 1986, at 24 years old, Aucoin did Cindy Crawford’s makeup for a Vogue cover.<\/p>\n

That was the point in his career where you could say “he made it”. In two years Aucoin did the makeup for 9 (!) Vogue Covers and 7 Cosmopolitan Covers! He was charging up to $6000 for a single makeup session. He got to beautify celebrities like Whitney Houston, Cher, Liza Minelli, Janet Jackson, Tina Turner and many more.<\/p>\n

Passing on knowledge<\/h2>\n

In the 80s and sometimes still today, makeup artist were very secretive about their techniques and products. Not Aucoin. He wanted to pass on all of his knowledge and started writing books to do so. The most popular one is “Making Faces”, but there are others like “The Art of Makeup” and “Face Forward”.<\/p>\n

In 2001 Aucoin finally started his own makeup brand: Kevyn Aucoin Beauty<\/a>. Unfortunately he was diagnosed with a pituitary tumor. It was successfully removed with surgery, however because of the pain, Aucoin took a lot of pain medication and quickly became addicted.<\/p>\n

Death<\/h2>\n

In May 2002 Kevyn Aucoin passed away from kidney and liver failure, caused by his drug dependency.<\/p>\n

For Aucoin makeup was a way for men and women to discover themselves. He wanted everyone to feel beautiful, no matter what. <\/p>\n

Kevyn Aucoin: Techniques<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Eyelash Curlers: this was really not done very much before Aucoin made it popular<\/li>\n
  2. Eyebrows: Aucoin took a lot of time shaping eyebrows so they really match every single face<\/li>\n
  3. Highlight in the inner corner of the eye: he wanted to recreate the sparkle in the eyes of his little niece<\/li>\n
  4. Contouring: yes, there was contouring before Kim K and Kevyn was a master at forming lips and faces!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I hope you liked this little biography!<\/p>\n

    Stay happy and healthy!<\/p>\n

    Maike Make up Artist Wien – Your makeup artist in Vienna<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I would like to introduce you to some makeup artists that have permanently changed the way we do makeup. Yes, even before Instagram, filters and facetune, artists were working hard and creatively. I am reading the book “Making Faces” right now, so it seems logical to start with Kevyn Aucoin. Early Life: Kevyn Aucoin Kevyn … <\/p>\n

    Continue reading “Makeup Art History: Kevyn Aucoin”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-allgemein"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"3.0.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["de","en"],"languages":{"de":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false}}},"yoast_head":"\nMaike Make up Artist Wien - Makeup Art History: Kevyn Aucoin<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Makeup Artistry has been around for a long time and some artists have shaped the way we do makeup. 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