“HEART OF GLASS” - LUCY’S MAGAZINE VOL 83

13 Nov

Back in May this year, Brisbane makeup artist and all round artist - Brooke Clarke, reached out to me to shoot a concept inspired by the Korean glass skin craze and the Pat McGrath “glass porcelain doll” she produced the year before at the runway show for Maison Margiela SS24. Of course Brooke had a twist for it, the twist literally being metallic twine.

Taking into consideration the effect to be created on the skin, I knew lighting would be important in setting up not just the mood for this beauty concept, but also to capture the glossiness of the skin. The metallic twine that Brooke traced along Monique’s face, gave a futuristic effect, one where human seemed merged with an embedded technology. Whenever I think future/ cyborg style of makeup I instantly imagine really bright light. The type of light you’d expect a person who’s been in cryo to step out of their chamber glowing in a wash of light.

Thus, for this shoot I wanted the light to be really glowing and Monique illuminated from all angles. The natural Sun would have been perfect, but on the day the light was not consistent as it was partly cloudy and we needed to control the light for consistency in the looks created throughout the day. So for this shoot I did a mix of strobe and continuous lights. I’ve done this lighting in past years, but only using strobes. But lately, ever since I added some continuous lights to my kit, I love mixing the two types of light.

To create this glassy skin effect, Brooke mixed the ingredients that Pat McGrath originally used at Maison Margiela SS24 and applied it using an air brush to her face and chest. The silver twine was then layed onto the skin with special effects glue.