Ninety models that don't repeat a single look, an army of makeup artists, dryers running, constant movement, a crazy rhythm. And cameras, many cameras. Because today Dior's haute couture backstage is a centrifuge of fashion and beauty content for the brand itself, the media, and the constant demand from networks and their influences. Nothing to do with those black and white testimonies from the first Dior shows, in the middle of the last century, in which the models are seen applying makeup alone in front of a mirror after having gone to the hairdresser...
Peter Philips tries to isolate himself from the noise and the constant movement of people. He has already explained the makeup but he continues with the brushes in his hand, now a photo, now a video. He is a virtuoso of his craft, a cultured man with a highly educated eye in art, image, film and photography, who graduated in fashion from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, the most groundbreaking incubator of talent at the end of the eighties.
By one of those capricious twists of fate he ended up working in Paris in the backstage of those who became famous as The Antwerp Six. There, through fashion, he discovered the transformative power of hairdressing and makeup and a passion that has made him one of the great references of diverse modern beauty.
“Not all women are fashionistas or need to be up to date with trends, but everyone wants to look beautiful,” she says. “Makeup is life, it is showing your emotions through color. If one day you are a little low in morale, you put on a little rouge, or mascara, and you can feel more beautiful. It boosts your confidence and encourages you to face the world,” says the creative director of Dior makeup.
Is makeup an art form?
It is a skill that can be turned into art through the eye of a photographer who creates a powerful image or with very well thought out visual communication. It's like making clay pots: first you have to master the technique and then create. It is something alive, very street and little museum.
How does the powerful Dior woman translate into makeup?
I think of it as if it were a bouquet of flowers, not a bouquet of roses or a single flower. She is a multifaceted woman who can feel confident with her face washed or go from nude to the most striking, powerful and daring colors... her common denominator is confidence and feeling like owners of her own beauty. She is a woman who uses femininity as a strength, not a weakness. And that she doesn't just use her power to be pretty or desirable. A red lip is not simply seductive: if you want people to listen to you, paint your lips bright red and they will also see what you want to say.
What is it like to work with María Grazia Chiuri?
She does incredible research in the house's archives, if she goes to Mexico she is interested in how they make embroidery, in the craftsmanship and its processes... You learn a lot from her. At first I had to gain her trust: I told her that I would not use her show to showcase my products. After two or three shows she realized that she was at her service and she trusts me. Sometimes, as inspiration, she shows me something I hadn't thought of; Other times he shows me an image and I tell him: I did that!
What surprises you most about her?
She is very clear, very determined. She is a strong woman and, if you don't know her, she can be tough but, at the same time, she is very kind to everyone, she cares about the team... she is a feminist, a fighter with a sweet, almost maternal part.
What's the makeup like?
Lately I have been working with nudes in lipsticks and shadows that have been very popular. But I'm talking about nude with all its nuances, which doesn't just mean beige! In the long term I think we will return to matte and more playful colors, such as shocking pink or corals, and more daring combinations.
Back to the eighties?
More like the reinterpretation of the eighties that has already been done in the new millennium. Those born in the 2000s already have a vision of the eighties, the seventies or the nineties that is very different from the original. The references are already very contaminated, I have seen retouched photos of Marilyn Monroe in which she almost looks like a Kardashian!
Summarize your work
It is something complex, challenging and very satisfying because the concept of beauty, like consumers, never stops evolving.
